You're Awful I Love You

Ludo | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 26, 2008)
• Original Release Date: 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Island
• ASIN: B0012K1ILM
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #56,891 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

About the Artist

After four years of insane hard work, coast-to-coast survival touring, and endless trips back home to St. Louis, Island Records group Ludo claws their way to the top of the heap with "Love Me Dead," the first single and video from their major label album debut, YOU'RE AWFUL, I LOVE YOU, to be released on February 26th.

The day before, on February 25th, Ludo kicks off the release with a morning sit-down on St. Louis radio 105.7/The Point. The next day, three hours of "clerk" duty at Vintage Vinyl (3-6:00 p.m.) climaxes with an 8:00 live acoustic performance broadcast by The Point. It's the prelude to a month-long 18-city coast-to-coast road trip that opens with first-week retail CD release events in Kansas City (The Record Bar), Chicago (Reggie's, with Q101 radio support), St. Charles, MO (Slackers), St. Louis (The Pageant), and Columbia, (Slackers, KBBM radio support). Ludo hits the SXSW Conference on March 13th. The second half of March, Ludo will open shows for Presidents of the United States of America. (Please see complete tour below.)

It only takes one listen to catch the infectious "Love Me Dead," a cancerously parasitic love song to a romantic dead-end (with the first-verse throwaway line, "you're awful, I love you!"). The song has grabbed Modern Rock radio by the throat since it shipped one month ago today. Following its impact date this week, "Love Me Dead" jumped to #3-bullet (from #6) on the FMQB SubModern Specialty chart.Next week, the clip is part of mtvU's "freshmen 5" (where the winning video, as picked by viewers, receives an automatic add on mtvU).

Vigilante bushwhackers with a heart of gold, who are out to bang your psyche and love you dead - the five-man conspiracy known as Ludo was named by Alternative Press as one of the "Bands To Watch In 2007." YOU'RE AWFUL, I LOVE YOU was recorded over the course of eight weeks in Los Angeles with producer Matt Wallace (Maroon 5, Train, Faith No More). Described by the band's Andrew Volpe as their "healthiest, most-ten-toed musicbaby yet," the new album follows up its two indie predecessors - Ludo's self-titled debut album of 2003 (recorded in St. Louis, "in roughly 14 days"), and 2005's mini-album EP Broken Bride (on Redbird Records).Currently up to its 16th episode, the "Thing" now incorporates the `Toothbrush' video for "Love me Dead. In addition to tracks from their first two albums - "Hum Along" from Ludo; and "Pt. I: Broken Bride" from Broken Bride - the site also streams "Love Me Dead" and "Drunken Lament" from YOU'RE AWFUL, I LOVE YOU

Product Description

Ludo's new album "You're Awful, I Love You" came out better than any of us could have hoped for. As a record, it combines the pop sensibilities of our first album with the darkness and adventurous storytelling of Broken Bride, and takes the combination thereof far beyond the scope of either, into a veritable uber-world of extremorock, where time is naught and babies burp themselves. When people hear this album for the first time, they will most likely be so moved that they defecate out a perfect, sentient, life-size clone of themselves, feel compelled to murder it, hide the body, and then never speak of it again. So watch out.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars You're awful, I love you, May 28, 2008

By 

Terry Mesnard (Bellevue, NE) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: You're Awful I Love You (Audio CD)

Like many listening to this album for the first time, I was compelled to purchased it simply due to the fact that "Love Me Dead" hooked me (...the cheap price helped, too). With this hysterical diatribe against a girl who wronged him and yet still has her claws in his heart, Ludo made me laugh, smile and fall in love. It's one of the wittiest songs I've heard recently, with lyrics that twist expectations.

What follows this first diatribe is a collection of punk/pop-focused songs, most of which seem focused on love in its various forms. None of these ideas are really new or unique. You have the song about the guy who's trying to fend off a former love who spurned him, but his lower area is betraying him ("Mutiny Below") to the guy whose attention and obsession borders on stalking ("Go-Getter Greg") to drinking away the pain with "Drunken Lament," to name a few.

Then there are the songs that hearken back to their last album The Broken Bride. "Lake Pontchartrain" is a terrific song that showcases their zany story-telling qualities, with a dark yet funny story centered around this famous lake. Then there's the most unique song of the bunch, "The Horror of Our Love." This song is one that really tickled my funny bone since this serenly calm and beautiful song is is told from the point of view of a typical horror film serial killer and is filled with lyrics that have to be made with tongue firmly in cheek:

"I'm a killer
Cold and wrathful
Silent sleeper
I've been inside your bedroom
I've murdered half the town
Left you love notes on their headstones
I'll fill the graveyards
Until I have you"

That song pretty much sums up Ludo: Dark, theatrical, over-the-top and funny, with an alternative look at the way love messes with you. Overall, You're Awful, I Love You, is pretty standard. The reason it deserves an above average rating is that the catchy melodies are complemented by witty lyrics that reward a closer listening. Very enjoyable and humorous, I hope we hear more from these guys in the future.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic Album. Very Entertaining and Fun, February 28, 2008

By 

D Brox (Manhattan, Kansas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: You're Awful I Love You (Audio CD)

Following up the epic "Broken Bride" EP, Ludo's "You're Awful, I Love You," is a fantastic album. The band has a wonderful mix of humor and sincerity that combine to create a very entertaining album. The songs cover topic such as a lake that eats people (Lake Ponchartrain), the conflict between physical and emotional desires (Mutiny Below), creepy stalkers (Go-Getter Greg) and drunkenly pining over an ex (Drunken Lament), just to name a few.

The songs are all catchy with lyrics ranging from silly, "I was driving out of there as fast as a Camry could!" to touching, "Every Saint has a past, every Sinner has a future, so you know what keeps me hanging around." The music is energetic and listeners just can't help but sing along to the catchy tunes. Without a doubt, this is one of the best albums I've listened to in months and months! I tried to think of a few of the standouts, but they're all too good to choose just one or two. Listen to the samples above for yourself and prepare to be impressed!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful... as always boys!, March 3, 2008

By 

A. Sorgea - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: You're Awful I Love You (Audio CD)

I have been a Ludo fan since right Broken Bride came out. I fell in love with their music through their self titled albums hit Hum Along. You're Awful I Love You was a perfect follow up to Broken Bride. The passion and angst and darkness from BB and the light hearted humor from the self titled album are all rolled into to one bright orange packages that doesn't fail to amuse, move, or entertain.

Topeka is by far my favorite of the album. The lyrics and melodies charm you from the start. "I found God in a catalytic converter in Topeka on a Monday night." Lake P. houses the essence of Broken Bride but never fails to keep you amused as the narrator goes of on a wild tale about swamp creatures and the loss of friends in a lake.

Congrats Ludo!