Login for Favorites
EDIT INFOArab Strap - Mad For Sadness
Tweet
Album Details
- Artist: Arab Strap
- Album: Mad For Sadness
- Label: Jetset
- Year of Release: 2000
- ME Rating:
- Reviewed by: dscanland on 2003-03-29
RecommendEven though their albums take a while to get over to our shores the Scottish mope rock group Arab Strap, none the less, manage to treat us to some very special offerings. Their new North American label is Jetset and this is the second release on the label. Mad For Sadness is a live offering drawing from most of their releases. You would hardly even know it was live except for the applause at the end of each track. The album was recorded at London's Queen Elizabeth Hall and it was done very well with crisp and clear production. If you are unfamiliar with the band their sound is one that rarely gets out of control while spilling their guts in their lyrics. Quite beautiful.
User Reviews and Comments
Log In or Register to Rate Albums
User Rating:
Write your own review
Tell us why this album is great or sucks ass, or correct the reviewer. If you write enough quality reviews you may find yourself on the editorial staff.
Reviews have to be over 100 words, shorter ones are classed as comments.
Tell us why this album is great or sucks ass, or correct the reviewer. If you write enough quality reviews you may find yourself on the editorial staff.
Reviews have to be over 100 words, shorter ones are classed as comments.
Log In or Register to Rate AlbumsReview:
on 2012-01-20 CharlesMartel Said:
"Mad for Sadness" was issued on limited release only, and though there have subsequent attempts to reissue it more widely, it is still one of those comparative rarities which litter the landscape of musical history. A live album, recorded in the Queen Elizabeth Hall in London the year before its release, it is also one of the most curious albums I have ever come across.
Live records are meant to be a recording of an event, preferably one where the band delivers a great performance appreciated by the audience. " Mad for Sadness " is nothing like that. The band, with a lazy, almost mechanical approach, deliver their songs to the audience with the same enthusiasm a postman delivers letters. It just the day job. There is virtually no relationship between audience and band beyond that. Were it not for the poor reproduction of the live sound, you could almost be forgiven thinking that this was a studio album with a few people sitting in and politely clapping at the end of each take.
This is a scrappy release, one where it would appear that very little effort went into it. The performance itself may not represent the band at their best, but they could have done better than this. Even their songs come out as lacking in feeling, and the whole thing is an exercise in going through the motions. I cannot think of what possessed the band to carry this project out.
At times, there are signs of life, but these are precious few. The guitars at times seem to want to let rip with some killer riff, but always remained restrained in deference to the rest of the music. There are even occasions when the heavy Scottish accent utters something which conveys are feeling of life, albeit a largely miserable one. But these moments are few and far between. The album grinds on for ten tracks and then leaves you. It leaves you with a feeling of disappointment and bewilderment. There was little here to excite you (but you knew that about Arab Strap anyway) and you got little out of it. As a live album, this is not one I would recommend. As an intro to the work of Arab Strap this is definitely not the place to start. Perhaps the reason why they issued so few copies was that they were disappointed with the album., If so, welcome to the club.
Rating: 4/10
