Friday, March 29, 2002
Stand aside Shania, Ryan, the Be Good Tanyas are looking to pass. Well, maybe they won't but it is mildly amazing to them at No.3 in the UK country music chart...
As predicted:
"Ultimately, this year's SXSW belonged to a Dallas band called The Polyphonic Spree." (Raleigh News & Observer)
"Highlights were many and varied. Here are my picks for the 10 Best Bands of SXSW, in order of preference: 1. The Polyphonic Spree... (Chicago Sun-Times)
"Offering a purposeful burst of optimism, the two dozen musicians and singers, wearing white robes and broad smiles..revived the blissful, elaborate pop of ''Penny Lane,'' ''Pet Sounds'' and ''Happy Together.'" (New York Times)
"The Polyphonic Spree were the closest thing to the stars of SXSW, impressing all who saw them." (Dallas Observer)
Except maybe the LA NewTimes for whom "the whole thing sounded like side 4 of The Wall as performed by the Flaming Lips".
Back in Feb '01, Q published one of the more scathing reviews of recent memory in the course of awarding Mass romantic, the debut by Neko Case side-project the New Pornographers, a damning 1 star out of 5. Fast-forward to the latest (April 2002) ed. of the increasingly non-essential mag, page 119 to be precise: "The New Pornographers / Mass romantic - Canadian indie rockers unleash hyperactive debut...It's hard not to be taken in by [their] poppy charm...3 stars."
Give it another year and it'll be a 5/5 pop classic. (reallyrather verdict: don't.)
posted by SMc at 11:14 AM
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