Underachievers Please Try Harder

Camera Obscura | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 20, 2004)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Merge Records
• ASIN: B00015HVWO
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #32,546 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Suspended from Class

2. Keep It Clean

3. A Sisters Social Agony

4. Teenager

5. Before You Cry

6. Your Picture

7. Number One Son

8. Let Me Go Home

9. Books Written for Girls

10. Knee Deep at the NPL

11. Lunar Sea

12. I Don't Want to See You

13. Footloose and Fancy Free

14. Teenager (Mpeg Video)

Editorial Reviews

Review

3 stars out of 5 - "[Shuffles] between cheapo bossa nova and countrified folk....Not emo, exactly - more like twee-mo." --Rolling Stone

4 stars out of 5 - "[T]his is revitalising indie-pop..." --Uncut

Witty, cool and nowhere as maudlin as it might've been in less talented hands, UNDERACHIEVERS is pure getting'-over-you delight." --Magnet --This text refers to the Vinyl edition.

Product Description

Camera Obscura create lilting, sophisticated melodies that draw similarities to Belle & Sebastian, The Clientele, or Trembling Blue Stars, but are also rooted in more classic sounds such as Nick Drake, Donovan, or Petula Clark. Songs drift and linger like clouds in a summer sky, with gentle hooks and breezy vocals. This is their 2004 release, lovingly remastered and presented on HQ 180 gram vinyl with coupon for MP3 download of the entire album, and two bonus tracks from Merge's CD version of this classic. --This text refers to the Vinyl edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sweet, Introspective Scot Pop, September 19, 2004

By 

Laura Reparaz (Salamanca, Spain) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Underachievers Please Try Harder (Audio CD)

Belle and Sebastian comparisons aside, Camera Obscura deserve to be analyzed on their own merit, of which they have much. Their arrangements drip 1960s Europop, yet still manage to sound surprisingly modern and original. The female vocals are soft and airy, like those of a child, but deliver mature and snippy witticisms. Paired with the quiet murmurings of the vocalists, the musicians create a unique and very beautiful style. Camera Obscura is a talented, smart bunch.
Fans of Leonard Cohen will immediately recognize a nod to Mr. C. in "Your Picture", which reproduces Cohen's early style right down to the lulling acoustic guitar, poetry lyrics, and emotionless Cohen-like male voice.
Soft and slow, yet still lots of fun, this album flows seamlessly from start to finish, and there isn't one song I skip past. Suffice it to say, since I got this album several months ago, it has been in constant rotation with my other 'most-listened-to' CDs. It takes more than a quick listen to appreciate the achievement of "Underachievers Please Try Harder", but it is well worth the extra attention to really get a feel for Camera Obscura's style.

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Detractors, step off..., October 29, 2004

By 

Greekfreak (Pusan Korea (South)) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Underachievers Please Try Harder (Audio CD)

First off, let's deal with all those nitwits out there who've got Belle & Sebastian pegged as some kind of sacred cow; if we're gonna play 'name that influence', then this review will be a thousand times longer than it needs to be, and I won't even get around to reviewing the actual LP!

Besides, this has some of the best songs Petula Clark never wrote. Particularly "A Sister's Social Agony", one of the best (and few) doo-wop-esque ditties I've heard since The Flamingoes.

The album starts off great, with "Suspended From Class", "Keep It Clean", "A Sister's...", and "Teenager", lulls a bit in the middle (minus a star for re-writing L. Cohen's "Suzanne" and calling it "Your Picture"; shame on you guys), then picks up a bit near the end.

For those in need of a chill pill fix, this'll do the trick.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Cute 50's-60's stylings. Melodic -- Wonderful., June 11, 2006

By 

Not Mozart (Detroit) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Underachievers Please Try Harder (Audio CD)

Seems like many people are mad that this isn't Bell & Sebastian. Well, It's not. It's probably closer to the stylings of The Clientelle or late era Yo La Tengo -- and they're not Scottish...?
Anyway, there are few, if any, synths -- the warm recording and instrumentation are all they need to make their music work. The girl/boy vocals are each unlike anything sung in at least 20 years and together just make me want to melt.
Also, fans of Saturday Looks Good to Me will enjoy, but I must warn you -- this album never really rocks out. It keeps a cool melodic additude throughout. Lunar Sea is bliss.