Artist: Gossip
Album: Music For Men
Year: 2009
Grade: 3.5 pretzels
Before reviewing Music For Men, I need to impress upon people the sheer, explosive energy of Gossip’s live performances. If you ever get a chance to see them live, do not hesitate to go. Do whatever you can to get tickets. Maul people, if you have to. Whether you’re a big fan of their music or not, Gossip are just way too fun to miss live. Beth Ditto’s world-quaking voice has no comparison and the rock-solid grooves the band locks into make not dancing an impossibility. This is music that compels you to move, in whatever way you feel appropriate, doing whatever it can to keep you from standing still. I bring all this up for one very important reason: Music For Men doesn’t even capture a tenth of this energy.
Not that the songs aren’t there. “Love Long Distance”, with that insidious little piano riff, is a top-notch, single-worthy track. The stomping “Pop Goes The World” is a fantastic dance-oriented jam. Topping everything off is “Heavy Cross”, a ferocious, growling beast that features guitar leaping from tension-building scratches to a completely unhinged chorus riff. While they may not have the fire of “Standing In The Way Of Control”, the song that put Gossip on the map, at least 80% of these songs are worthy additions to the Gossip songbook. They’ve just had all their fangs removed by the production.
The man I’m choosing to blame is producer-to-the-stars Rick Rubin (his clients have included the Red Hot Chili Peppers, the Beastie Boys and Slayer, to name only a few). Thanks to Rubin’s influence, Music For Men is Gossip’s first major-label release. However, his production is terrifyingly slick, polished and smooth. Gossip are a band that celebrate and flaunt what others would call flaws, so a certain level of gritty audio mixing is appropriate. On this new album, all those thrilling rough edges are sand-blasted away to make the band more radio-friendly. The results are songs like “Dimestore Diamond” and “Men In Love”, which sound thin and slightly empty. Guitarist Brace Paine isn’t given the chance to dominate these songs the way he does live, removing one of the most exciting and necessary elements in Gossip’s music.
The upside to all this is that Hannah Blilie’s drums are suddenly pushed to the forefront, in all their chugging, unstoppable glory. The rhythm in these songs is just insane. The tense, angular “Vertical Rhythm” shows the subtle end of the band’s spectrum. Rubin’s production is actually very appropriate for these slow-burning numbers. Sadly, “Heavy Cross” is alone when it comes to sheer rocking power. Gossip are at their strongest when Ditto and co. are at their most brazen. This is a band who challenges our perceptions of human sexuality on paper (gay and lesbian themes dominate the lyrics) and who challenges our perceptions of beauty onstage (Ditto is quite a large woman, Paine has a penchant for dressing in bondage gear and Blilie rocks a very androgynous look. Just check out that cover). They need to tear the roof down if the song demands it and Rubin’s toothless production takes too much of the danger and fun out of an exciting band.
Not that the songs aren’t there. “Love Long Distance”, with that insidious little piano riff, is a top-notch, single-worthy track. The stomping “Pop Goes The World” is a fantastic dance-oriented jam. Topping everything off is “Heavy Cross”, a ferocious, growling beast that features guitar leaping from tension-building scratches to a completely unhinged chorus riff. While they may not have the fire of “Standing In The Way Of Control”, the song that put Gossip on the map, at least 80% of these songs are worthy additions to the Gossip songbook. They’ve just had all their fangs removed by the production.
The man I’m choosing to blame is producer-to-the-stars Rick Rubin (his clients have included the Red Hot Chili Peppers, the Beastie Boys and Slayer, to name only a few). Thanks to Rubin’s influence, Music For Men is Gossip’s first major-label release. However, his production is terrifyingly slick, polished and smooth. Gossip are a band that celebrate and flaunt what others would call flaws, so a certain level of gritty audio mixing is appropriate. On this new album, all those thrilling rough edges are sand-blasted away to make the band more radio-friendly. The results are songs like “Dimestore Diamond” and “Men In Love”, which sound thin and slightly empty. Guitarist Brace Paine isn’t given the chance to dominate these songs the way he does live, removing one of the most exciting and necessary elements in Gossip’s music.
The upside to all this is that Hannah Blilie’s drums are suddenly pushed to the forefront, in all their chugging, unstoppable glory. The rhythm in these songs is just insane. The tense, angular “Vertical Rhythm” shows the subtle end of the band’s spectrum. Rubin’s production is actually very appropriate for these slow-burning numbers. Sadly, “Heavy Cross” is alone when it comes to sheer rocking power. Gossip are at their strongest when Ditto and co. are at their most brazen. This is a band who challenges our perceptions of human sexuality on paper (gay and lesbian themes dominate the lyrics) and who challenges our perceptions of beauty onstage (Ditto is quite a large woman, Paine has a penchant for dressing in bondage gear and Blilie rocks a very androgynous look. Just check out that cover). They need to tear the roof down if the song demands it and Rubin’s toothless production takes too much of the danger and fun out of an exciting band.
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