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41 of 44 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
HARD, SOFT, SWEET, ANGRY, MELLOW. EVERYTHING I AM., December 27, 2000
What a great cd. Very mellow, very hard, very sweet, very angry. This cd has it all. In buying this cd, I had hoped that it would compare to GBYE! of which I am a big fan. I must say that this gave me tons more than I had even hoped for. I bought this and "Come On Die Young" at the same time and I believe this is the better of the two. While "Come On Die Young" is an incredible album, this just seems to be more touching and melodic with less slow drum beats. I love the song entitled "Tracy". There are no drums in this song and I just love the way Mogwai uses Television and Phone Conversations as background filler for their songs. It adds an element of life that no other group can match. In the song "R U Still In 2 It", you get to hear Aidan Moffat test his vocal skills. Not an incredible singer by any means, but who cares with the instruments to back him up. You won't even care about the fact that his voice is very somber. My favorite song on the album has to be "Yes! I am a long way from home". It's got a kicked back, sweet beat and a very mellow flowing bass line and is slowly lifted by beautiful guitars towards the end. The melodies on this song were just meant to be. Simply put.Also, the production of this album is just phenomonal. I feel like the bass is sitting in my lap on this whole album. The clarity of the songs is just great. For most of the album, nothing is overdone. Everything is just so subtle it makes you wonder why all music isn't this good. This music makes you happy that they play the crap they do on the radio because it just confirms that you have great taste in "REAL MUSIC". Buy this album today, or tomorrow I guess. The longer you put it off the more upset you'll be with yourself for putting it off. You can download .mp3's of this album but I guarantee you'll just delete them in a few days when you go to buy the album. In other words, don't waste your time with the computer, just buy it and enjoy. I can't wait for you to hear the song "Like Herod" Hold on, folks. Keep all arms and legs inside the roller-coaster for the remainder of the ride. Thank you, and we'll see you on the other side.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great, But Not The Masterpiece It's Made Out To Be, May 2, 2004
I like Mogwai as much as the next person, but I'll be the first to admit that their records can be pretty spotty and inconsistant. The reason Mogwai are rightfully held in such high regard is that when they're good, they're really, really, really f'ing good. There are many moments on Young Team where Mogwai are mind-blowing, but there are also instances of filler that disrupt the flow of the record. The strengths are hard to ignore: "Yes, I Am A Long Way From Home," "Like Herod," the gorgeous "Tracy," and the earth-shattering "Mogwai Fear Satan." But "Radar Maker" and "With Portfolio"? Needless interludes. The latter is especially obnoxious as the noise in the end becomes louder and louder to the point of being unbearable. And considering the CD is mixed very low in terms of volume, the noise is a very unwelcome guest. Otherwise, Young Team is a pretty great record. It's pretty much an essential for Mogwai fans and perhaps a good starting point, but I honestly think that Happy Songs For Happy People is their most consistant album.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
A Diamond in the Rough, December 18, 2003
It's obvious from Young Team that Mogwai is a band with talent and ideas--the album is for the most part a pleasant listen. Probably the greatest highlights, in my opinion, are "Like Herod", "Summer", and "Mogwai Fear Satan". "Like Herod" reminds me of the Pink Floyd song "Come In Number 51, Your Time is Up" (essentially a reworked, transposed version of "Careful With That Axe, Eugene"). Certainly the most innovative on the album is the second half of "With Portfolio", which truly challenges the listener to follow along. Also, I have to say that the ending of "A U still in 2 it" is quite striking. I rather like the effect of the guitar beneath that resonating piano. And finally, can enough possibly be said about "Mogwai Fear Satan"? This is easily the strongest track on the album, even beating out "Like Herod". This track has a flow to it like nothing else on Young Team, and you hardly notice the length of the song, as you never want it to end!To me, however, Mogwai's strongest suit (at least, as I've got to know it in Young Team) is its percussion. It seems to me the drummer is the one with the most variation in his playing through a song, who really holds together the songs. A prime example is "A cheery wave from stranded youngsters", which has a very intriguing percussion riff. In fact, the counting off at the beginning of this ensures that the listener's attention will be placed upon the percussion, and this is a very smart choice. Other places that benefit from these percussion explosions include "Like Herod" and "Summer". As for the "vocals", I would say the phone conversations work rather well. However, at times there seems to be something wanting on Young Team--hence the "in the rough" description. There's something rather dry and distant in the mixing, which at times can diminish songs that otherwise could have been made more hard-hitting. Given the drummer's strength, I would have favored a mix similar to what you hear with classic rock artists like Led Zeppelin or Joe Walsh, which would bring them blasting to the forefront to let them "drive" these songs. This band would benefit from a mixing job a bit more like what Sigur Ros employs. I also think that a stronger bass tone might have been in order. The other problem is that with the exception of the percussion riffs, many of the songs do not seem to show much evolution from their original riffs. There are very few true solos to grasp on to. In particular, I think that "Radar Maker" demonstrates this problem, as well as "With Portfolio" (until the more innovative section kicks in. And, I'm afraid the vocal attempt in "A U still in 2 it" is less that inspiring in the verses. I certainly found this album worth keeping and listening to from time to time, but I can't say it will be my most frequent listen, due to the flaws I've pointed out--sometimes by the end it becomes rather tiring to listen to it straight through. Therefore, I cannot really award it more than 3 stars, but I certainly can't go lower, because Young Team does have potential to it, and based on it I am willing to try other Mogwai ventures. "Mogwai Fear Satan" and "Like Herod", which are exempt from almost every complaint I've made, suggest that there is much more to this band, and I look forward to hearing it.
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Dominic Aitchison shares his favorite music with Amazon customers. See all artists' picks on our Music You Should Hear page.
by Mogwai 
