Poll: Which band, popular among Fruheads, do you just not get?

i don't like dvn. the one song i've heard.

I can't believe you didn't list "Moxy Fruvous" as a choice.

I voted for the Nields because I've seen them so many times but I also don't get Peter Mulvey who I've seen a few times and Guster that I haven't seen. Of course Guster might be better live. I know Fruvous was.

Whoops, I missed Barenaked Ladies. Add them to my list too. I saw them the first time they came to New York and went away disappointed.

I just.. never got them. I got Pete Best.. however, if Stuart Sutcliffe had ever been anything of a musician, i'm sure I would've liked him better. Shmuck hadda go die of an hemmorage. blasted.

I get them all to varying degrees. There's none on the list that I don't like. Some I don't like as much as others do, but not to the point of not "getting" it. I guess the Nields and EFO come closest because I've been a fan and seen many shows and have most of the albums...but the appeal has waned for me. But I still "get" why people love them. It's just stopped being my thing much.

And now I must go cry because Gordon has broken my heart. *sniffle*

I don't like DVN, either. The all-too-many songs I've heard. ;-)

A close second place to EFO. And if I'd never heard 90s-era GBS, that would be at the top of the list, but I know you guys all hate the new stuff, too. ;-)

For those "not getting" BNL, which period of their work have you been exposed to? For me the pre-1998 period is fantastic, after that, not so much. I own and continue to enjoy Gordon, Maybe You Should Drive, Shoebox EP, Born on a Pirate Ship, and Rock Spectacle (and consider them some of the best CDs I own), anything after that I have not really liked enough to own the CD. I saw them live pre-98 and enjoyed them greatly but I recall seeing reviews of concerts after that where they played pretty much their new album in its entirety each show, and seeing how I didn't really enjoy that stuff, it wasn't worth it for me.

Lots of people will disagree and some enjoy the recent stuff even more than the older, but for me, I am a BNL fan because of those first albums, not the newer ones.

How did I break your heart? I must make amends.

Not getting Peter. :)

I chose the nields... but.... really, I *do* get them... in the sense that I can understand why people like them.
They write really good, catchy songs... it's just the voices (or lack thereof) that I can't get past.

The one I really don't "get" is GBS.

I have to agree about DVN. A lot of funny goes a short way.

I've seen everyone else and I like everyone else, but this Peter Mulvey guy is unknown to me.

Everyone's breaking my heart left and right! :)

He's a guitar god singer songwriter who kicks all sorts of butt and and and and and and is awesome. Don't listen to Gordon. *grin*

www.petermulvey.com

www.mulveyfan.org� (an FHDC sister site)

I've actually found that even their recent stuff still sounds distinctly like BNL. I have their latest (or what was their latest some time recently) album in my iPod, and it once shuffled to a song from it, and before Steve even started singing, I could tell it was a BNL song (I ripped the CD and then promptly forgot about it, which is why I hadn't actually heard it before :). I dunno, maybe that's not a good thing. But I think it is. They're distinctive.

The recent shows where they played the entire new album were apparently very interesting. They'd do a set of the album, in order, then play a second set, in which their goal was to play every BNL song ever written, recorded, or performed, over the course of the tour, which is not an easy thing to do considering how many songs they've written.

Actually, I really like their new album.

Sea of No Cares, that one I'm not as fond of ;_)

oh, yeah, I don't think anyone would debate that they still have a very distinctive sound....

I'm one who likes some songs from all of their albums.... new and old... except for the latest one, which hasn't done anything for me yet.

That's my problem with newer BNL though, it all sounds pretty much the same.
(I'll admit right here that I have only heard a bit of the newest album, and I'd be happy if the rest of it proved me wrong)

It's not that the songs are bad, but it doesn't sound like they're working at it anymore. They found a style that works, and haven't drifted much from it since.

The first two albums, much of the third, and half of Stunt are great though.

see, BNL are pretty much my favourite band... and I absolutely cannot stand Everything to Everyone. The suck occasionally makes me actively angry ;P

Yeah, it's the first album of theirs where there wasn't ANY song that I instantly liked.

I have such a crush on Steven Page. You have no friggin' idea.

That one time I met his brother and didn't realize it to the next day was kind of neuro.

But, yeah. Steven Page.

Someday I'll run into him. Then I'll start making vowel sounds and have to go away.

Biggest.

Crush.

Ever.




*hides*

I like DVN, and I really like them live, but I'm rarely in the mood to just put on one of their albums.

but Maybe Katie is a vicious earworm.

yeah, Stunt is actually very underrated, I think, because people assumed they'd sold out with One Week. but it has some fantastic (hah!) songs on it.

BoaPS is the one I just can't get into. There are maybe four or five songs on it I can even tolerate. Of course, those are also mostly incredibly brilliant, so maybe they make up for the horror that is Spider in My Room, but still.

Yeah, that's the first one that's starting to grow on me.

I really enjoyed them live until their shows started becoming fairly repetitive and predictable (I'd go for request-o-rama and the stuff they'd do in between songs, which was almost always good).

But their albums I just can't get into. There's something about the way they were recorded that just makes them seem kind of flat (not in pitch, but in energy) compared to the live shows. I think a group like DVN just doesn't translate that well to CD.

I totally agree.

They have that problem of "not translating onto recording" even more than the bobs did.

I can totally see that.

Gordon is a singalong-in-the-car-with-my-sister album, MYSD is... amazing.

You Will Be Waiting. Oh, my god. That song.

The Rest Of The Album. Oh, my god. That rest of the album.

Stunt is tons of fun.

Maroon has some pretty good songs, as well.

Plugged is a fun album (The Bobs), though

Huh.
Spider in My Room is actually one of the songs I like more on BoaPS.
Of the early three, I do think BoaPS is the weakest. I think the strong points are stronger on BoaPS, but as a whole, Stunt is a better album.

Now you break my heart.

Well I'm a gentleman so I will forgive you.
I still have to make amends for breaking yours.

By the way it isn't that I hate Mulvey it is just that he makes no impression on me. I have two of his albums, seen him a few times and he just didn't register.

I forgive you for all of it because you've tried (especially live) and not everybody can love everything. But you've tried, and you've seen him in his best form (live) so...yeah. It saddens me but you still rock Gordon. :)

(note to all: No, I don't think he needs my forgiveness anyway, I'm just joshin'. :) I'm not THAT rabid)

I don't really get those guys. Why aren't they on the list? I'm so totally confused���

Oh, so true. And my best friend Katie loved it. ;o)

I don't have any problems with any album up until Everything to Everyone. I feel like BNL sold out a little with that album.

...Just a little. :o/

Just wondering, which two albums do you have?

It looks like I gave my old one away, I don't remember the title. Now all I have is Kitchen Radio.

GORDON! You, of all people, should know how to use the reply button! Shame on you.

:)

i went to a lot of shows just to harass them and talk to bernie. :D

I plead guilty with an explanation. I got an email notification about the post and replied by clicking on the link instead of going to the forum, it only showed the comment I was responding to and a place for a post, I thought it would automatically consider it a reply. I was wrong. Sorry.

The acoustic versions on the bonus DVD were much better than the album tracks.

Call And Answer. Nuf' Said.

speaking of DVDs, have you seen the Barelaked Nadies DVD?

it has all of the videos (except for another postcard, because that came out after the release of the dvd), concert footage, and a commentary track.

it's really great.

i'm with you, actually. including the part where i'm totally useless if we ever met (but that's with anyone i like).

i love love stuff from every single album, & on every single album there's a couple of songs i can't stand. thus "alcohol promo single" is my favourite album.

There's another DVD from Canada called Barenaked Truth that has a few little video clips of them as a quartet (pre-Tyler) playing early stuff like "Troube with Tracy" and "Night Photographs." It's oh so short, but amazing.

i don't know. *baffled*

i don't get the Beatles either. why aren't they listed?

his brother's cute, too. and very nice.

I met him once, but didn't know he was steve's brother until the next day.

I'm going to have to look for that!

At the very least I like all the artists/bands on that list, and some I actively love. �I couldn't even vote for Pete Best.� :D

ya know, I never got the beatles either..... but recently they've started to grow on me....

I'm seriously considering picking up an album or two.

Talking to Bernie is the best thing! I love Bernie!

I always said Barenaked Ladies is a bland Moxy Fruvous. Why have BNL when you can have a Moxy Fruvous, moxy fruvous tastes better and has half the fat.

I can't believe guster is the #2 pick..... Or that there's only ONE vote for GBS.

I can't believe that Pete Best is #3. People are just jealous for Paul because all the girls liked Pete Best best.

hee. i meant that in a "Hey! Not the Beatles!" kind of way, but nobody bit. :P I get them, but I do know of other people who don't.

I almost bit. But then I didn't. :)

I like the beatles early stuff till Pete Best left.

peter is the good. you should give him a try.

I'm really sad that the Nields got the most votes!!! Then again, if we're talking about band-era stuff, I have to say that a lot of their songs I just cannot get into. And the recording quality is usually so tinny, and they sound like bugs. But I guess we're even because Eddie From Ohio, while I see how fun and harmonioius they are, does not really do it for me. However, I had to vote for Guster, because they just strike me as rather bland and john mayer-esque.

See, I like Everything to Everyone a lot better than Maroon.

dear god, why?

What?! Spiders is a WONDEROUS song!! at least i think so myself, when the Brothers Creeggan play it.
i love the brothers creeggan!!!

i chose Great Big Sea because of all celtic and east coast folk type ive ever heard, they are at the bottom of my list of preference. i also cant listen to DVN for any extended period of the time, as for the Neilds, i pretty much either love or hate any one of their songs, so they definitely wouldnt have been picked because i love enough of their stuff. Now TMBG, i was shockingly disappointed when i heard their stuff. i had heard so many good things about them. i just dont get it. come to think of it, i shouldve picked them.

guster were way more interesting before their most recent album. also, i knew the dog before he came to class.

I really like John Mayer. I don't listen to Guster so much now because so many of their songs depress me or are about things that I view negatively. To me, John Mayer has more heart.

Yes, the Bros Creeggan are fantastic.

but recently they've started to grow on me.. There's gotta be something you could do about that. I recall hearing somewhere that Stacey's got oatmeal soap.

First of all, We're About 9 is highly over rated. They have lots of talent, but they have no clue how to use it. Writting bad songs surly doesn't help. I still don't understand the loyalty of their fans. I mean how can you stand by a band what writes painfully bad songs? Lets take "Albany" for example: The first verse doesn't hook you in lyrically (Or musically for that matter) and then you get a choris, which leaves you wondering "Why the hell would anyone want to go to Albany". I mean I've been there and I am not impressed. Then there is the second which starts blathering about Charles Bronson movies. Half way threw the second verse you just don't care anymore. And then they want to go to Albany again. Maybe they like the watered down beer in the Irish bars? If you are a glutton for punishment, the third verse finally gets to the point. But at that point who cares? I sure as hell don't. However, with that being said, wake me up in 10 years and maybe they will have a clue how to put that tallent to good use.

The only reason I like John Mayer is because he dressed in a bear suit and heckled his band mates by asking them "Is it true, 'Your Body is a Wonderland' was written about a man?!" on a bullhorn!

So talented songwriters can only write songs about pleasant things?

Listen to Born Again and then try to tell me We're About 9's songwriting is bad.

Amen. Brian is one of the most brilliant and witty songwriters to have shown up on the scene in a *while*.

Born Again, nothin'. Listen to For One More and then try to tell me We're About 9's songwriting is bad.

That song is so good it gives me chills every time I hear it.

And let's not forget Writing Again and If You See William and Weight of the Ocean.

To be fair, though, WA9 has always disappointed me live. But I love their songs and I'm confident that eventually they'll learn to put together good setlists.

[Edited because, what happened to my line breaks??]

That song is so good it gives me chills every time I hear it. Yeah, you're not alone. That's one of those songs that often causes me to pause itunes after it plays because I just need to let it settle in.

I think you miss read bad for sad. First of all I love Wood. And not just when I get it, but the Moxy Fruvous album. That is not a pleasent album. Secondly, you missed the point of this poll. I mean come on, how can you not love Brontosaurus? The album is brilliant and captures DVN's onstage persona perfectly in the studio. But wait, that is your oppinion and how can I tell you that you are wrong for stating it. The whole point of this thread is to talk about bands we don't get. I have seen WA9 several times and own two (that's two too many) CDs of theirs. I think I have listened to enough of them to form an edicated opinion on them.

So I saw this, and listened to the MP3 of the month on his website. I went in with average-high expectations, because... i dunno. I like guitar god singer-songwriters who kick all sorts of butt, I suppose. Anyway, it was really good! Reaaly! See, i'm still quite addicted to fr�vous, 'cause i've only known about them for less than a year, and all their stuff is fresher to me than it is to a lot of you guys. I also love Erin mcKeown, who is another guitar god-ess singer songwriter. who also plays the banjo, and the electric guitar. and bass guitar. Anyway, I heard the song "here in the going going gone" and it was insanely good. so, thanks for the heads up. :)

Peter Mulvey is definitely a guitar god. And Erin is quite the guitar goddess. They are both so much fun to see live, IMHO. In the same guitar deity vein, I would also recommend Patty Larkin and Richard Shindell, to name two.

yep, Erin IS a guitar goddess. the lady of all trades. I'll check out those reccomendations too, thanks so much. Erin would definetely be awesome to see live. I have never seen anyone live....*tear* because i am a youngin'. But anyway, what would've been amazing was that 3 man circus thing, with Erin, Jian, and that other guy. (sorry if i offend a fan of his, his name just slips my mind) Because i am a fan of jians as well.

(I'm not a fan, but the third member is Andy Stochansky). Hey, being young is not an excuse! :) Though, yeah, I definitely go to more concerts in a year now than I did in all of my teenage years. But times are changing, you never know when you'll be have an opportunity to go to a concert. There's a 13 year old on the Dar-List who's been to like 4 Dar Williams' shows with one of his parents in the past few months...a budding folkie. :) Are your parents into the same or similar music as you are? Perhaps you could drag them along to a show.

Ok, being young isn't much of an excuse, I admit. If the opportunity came along, i would try very hard tho. Umm...my parents don't really like the same kind of music as me...that I know of. my mom likes erin ok i guess. What would've been an awesome opportunity was the fr�vous show at the keswick theatre. the keswick is about 5-10 minutes from my house, and i've been there quite a few times on school field trips. Sadly, that was about 4 years or so ago, right? i dunno if you were there or not. apparently it was a great show. On anther note, just wanted to share this 'cause it's funny- I started general music in school a couple weeks ago, it's required as part of this "connected learning cycle" thing. And my music teacher asked us to fill out this index card with a little about ourselves, including what kind of music we like. I put fr�vous on there, so she came up to me near the end of class and said "Who's this? Moxy Fro-voos?" What's that thing over the u?" me: "It's Mahk-see Froo-vis. And the thing over the u is an umlaut." "What kind of name is that?!? What kind of music do they play?" "Uhh...they're Canadian. They play...indie pop rock folk, i guess. And a cover of the Bee Gees." "Ok...." Then she walked away. Anyway, that class is really boring, because it is basic rythyms, etc. which I alrady know from 4 years of clarinet. So I started doodling, and humming "Lee" to myself. And it turned into this little pictoral representation of the song. It's pretty good, besides the fact that the balcony is a little strange looking. When I finish, I'll put it on my profile, scan it or something.

If you ever get a chance, go see Peter live.� You'll either fall in love with his music at that point, or you won't. :) Albums can go either way, nothing definitive...but if you can see him give a show and not love him, well then he's just not your thing. :) Heee.

I have seen him do double-bills with Erin McKeown so that would be reallycool for you if it ever happened again.

I don't mean to speak for the other posters in this thread, but think I just love WA9's songs so much that I feel like anyone who doesn't is missing out on something and should keep listening to them until they adore them as much as I do. Or something. But, ya know, if you've tried (and I think the important thing with this group is to listen to a recording, which you've done) and you just don't like them, well, OK. You're entitled to your educated opinion. I don't really understand it, but to each his own, right?

Right. Besides, that is what this poll is about, and I think I not only have my opinion, but I have facts to back it up. Ok, so they are facts inflewanced by my oppinion, but they are facts none the less. Plus, there are music cridics (Berkshire Eagle for instance, often they run wonderful reveiws of folk musicians) who will agree with me 100%.

I still don't get how you can listen to them as much as you claim to.

Are you trying to start a flame war or something? Because your dismissive attitude and treatment of opinion as "facts" just reeks of trolling.

And god...since when are critics infallible?

Just because I don't like WA9 doesn't mean I am trying to start a flame war. Sorry I am not a sheep. If you read what I said, I was agreeing with Becca even though we don't agree. She apperciated that my disision is not an uninformed opinion. Of couse, seeing as how I dissagree, I am sorry I used my brain and I will continue to listen to things other people tell me I should like.

I often agree with Seth Rogovoy, who is a tallented writer and ofton reviews folk shows in the Berkshires. He has also written books about Klesmer Music and written articles in Jewish periarticles. He is a wonderful writer who you should check out.

Critics arn't infalible, but they have deserning tastes because they often see too many mediocer shows.

Oh wait, I just had some more oppinions, I geuss the brain washing didn't take hold.

You appear to be willfully misunderstanding what I was saying. No one's disputing your opinion and your absolute right to have it. Many share it. But then you proceed to use opinion and fact as part and parcel in your assessment of the band, where what you actually have is just opinions. You don't like them, you don't think they write good songs, etc. All valid points. But none of these represent facts about the band...just your impression of them. So my contention is just that the way you put forth your opinion...stating it as fact and also implying that people who are fans are wrong because of the "painfully bad songs"...that's the part I was saying seems trollish. Giving one's opinion, even when contrary, does not have to be inherently confrontational and you seemed to be gleefully making it so.

There's a big gulf between "this is how I feel" and "this is how I feel, and is in fact the way it is, and y'all are weird to think otherwise."

I personally don't have a fully formed opinion of the band either way...I'm not a rabid fan defending them. Maybe just a rabid fan of FHDC who just gets rather oversensitive about the tone.

Andrea, please reread my post that began you on this before you even say another word. The stupidity of your last post atounds me.

Just...never mind. Hopeless cause, don't know why I even bothered. Sorry for wasting my energy, and sorry y'all for allowing the tone I so objected to to actually continue when I should have just ignored it. I'll take my posting stupidity elsewhere! :)