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EDIT INFOTed Leo & The Pharmacists - Living With The Living
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Album Details
- Artist: Ted Leo & The Pharmacists
- Album: Living With The Living
- Label: Touch And Go
- Year of Release: 2007
- ME Rating:
- Reviewed by: dscanland on 2007-03-21
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RecommendA Ted Leo and the Pharmacists album is always worth getting excited about. Ted and his boys rarely let their fans down. On Living With The Living we are treated to some of the best tracks of their career. No sooner have you thrown this disc on you are treated with the best song on the album, "The Sons of Cain". It is a rollicking power-pop song presented as only Leo could. "Army Bound" takes the foot off of the throttle but to no less infectious. "Colleen" seems to take the traditional Ted Leo approach. "A Bottle of Buckie" really takes on the classic Elvis Costello approach. It is a fun song that isn't too fast. It's got a bouncy chorus that is very memorable (best part about Ted Leo). "Bomb.Repeat.Bomb." is probably the least conventional track on Living With The Living. It is an angry song and has a powerful message. "La Costa Brava" is a song looking for a roadtrip to be the soundtrack for.
I found that Living With The Living worked best when I was able to pay full attention to the hooks and such. If I put this album on in the background it did nothing for me. So, give it a shot when you have time to really sit down and focus on it. I wasn't disappointed after that. It is the most diverse Ted Leo album to date, that's a good thing. I really had to tear myself away from Living With The Living in order to review other albums. It grew on me more with every listen. Oh, I should probably mention that this album is the first for their new label, Touch and Go.
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on 2009-07-02 fortunecookie Said:
Ted Leo is a bit hard to classify -- it seems to bouncy to fall into "indie", too musically sound to fall into what is referred to as "punk" these days and too deep to be called "pop".
The lyrics carry strong political messages against the Bush Administration, but even if you still have a "Bush/Cheney 2004" bumper sticker on your SUV, you can look beyond the lyrics. Thankfully, it doesnt date the album too much.
"Who Do You Love?, "Colleen", and "Sons of Cain" are the most representative of Leo, and some of the more enjoyable tracks on the album. They're bright, but tend to carry darker messages. Another favorite is The Unwanted Things, which carries a nice reggae-style beat.
The album overall most closely reminds me of Spoon, but with better lyrics and a wider range of genres. Id classify it as a must-buy, even if this is the first time youve ever heard of Ted Leo.
Rating: 9/10
