Sadly not available online, but the reviewer ends the positive review by writing "What, then, does this new post-trilogy work represent for Fagen? A second wind? A therapeutically induced acceptance of things as they are, perhaps? In any case, Dan aficionados will undoubtedly recieve Sunken Condos as a fascinating new puzzle - or series of puzzles - to be endlessy debated if never actually solved. What matters is that Donald's back in his self-referencing sweet spot, and all's right with the world."
UPDATE OICTOBER 4:
Warner Bros has published the article on the Fagen PR page. Just click this link and it's there on the lower left side.
Not bad, though it's interesting that it doesn't mention the album on the cover.
ReplyDeleteIMO, the mellow, nostalgic bliss of Miss Marlene is the best thing he's done since Almost Gothic. Slinky Thing is a playful, light and airy gem with some wonderful vocal harmonies and vibes. Weather in my Head channels that old-time bluesy-rock in distinct Don fashion. He took Out of the Ghetto and made it far better than the Issac Hayae's original. The violin in the outro is a brilliant touch.
The question is, when the heck are those sound samples going to go up? What's with the hold-up?
In an overall (very) positive review of the album, the only song getting a negative reaction is the Issac Hayes cover:
ReplyDeleteIt is called a "lone misstep", but "the band blows through it with such exhilaration that Fagen can be forgiven for this indulgence."
A tidal wave of positive reviews would hopefully make more people sit up and take notice of the fact that a new Fagen album is out. As I recall Morph got the soundbites up just before the actual release. Many potential buyers never knew it existed. From an outsiders point of view record companies and the whole "music industry" seem to have a hard time promoting anything but the lastest chart names. A lot of good or even great music with potential sales looks like it's just being released out into that great wasteland to fend for itself.
Judging by the comments to the I'm Not The Same... clip on YouTube a lot of people are happy he's sounding closer to The Nightfly again. I guess we'll see if it does any better than Morph did. Hopefully it will!
Wow, a 'misstep'? I think not. But different strokes for different folks. Funny enough, I don't care too much for Memorabilia, The Good Stuff, Planet D'Rhonda, yet even those tunes are way better than over 95% of what's being released nowadays.
ReplyDelete"A tidal wave of positive reviews would hopefully make more people sit up and take notice of the fact that a new Fagen album is out."
Welcome to the 21st century. We obviously grew up in a different era rich with risk-taking, groundbreaking artists who actually cared about stuff like, oh, I dunno, melody, harmony, lyrics and arrangement. Stuff that most younger listeners of today don't seem to care about.
"As I recall Morph got the soundbites up just before the actual release. Many potential buyers never knew it existed."
Well, Don did air the whole album, sans MTC repise, albeit on some random jazz radio station (also broadcast over the internet), but that's not going to reach the majority of listeners.
"From an outsiders point of view record companies and the whole 'music industry' seem to have a hard time promoting anything but the lastest chart names. A lot of good or even great music with potential sales looks like it's just being released out into that great wasteland to fend for itself."
You said it. In their eyes, Donald already has his established crowd of listeners.
"Judging by the comments to the I'm Not The Same... clip on YouTube a lot of people are happy he's sounding closer to The Nightfly again. I guess we'll see if it does any better than Morph did. Hopefully it will!"
Most of those listeners are likely SD/DF fans, so par for the course. I certainly hope it sells more than MTC but only time will tell.
Where I can find to buy this online?
ReplyDeleteArrielle P
@Arrielle:
ReplyDeleteDepending on where you live you may be able to find it cheaper, but amazon.com sell magazines online. And so does newstand.co.uk. They also deliver abroad.
http://www.newsstand.co.uk/140-TV-and-Film-Magazines/6457-Subscribe-to-UNCUT-Magazine-Subscription.aspx
We haven't tried any of them as we have local online stores where we live (Sweden) that only deliver to Sweden.
Read the whole article on Warner Bros Records Donald Fagen PR page:
ReplyDeletehttp://press.wbr.com/donaldfagen