compulsive Liars

It looks like the latest Liars joint (aptly titled "Liars") is a bit of a connundrum. Or at least, it's penny-farthinged the indie-critic world.

I 'picked up' the album this morning after seeing such contrasting reviews.

Ok, so I was mostly intrigued by the Liars "going pop"

As it turns out, they've remembered what song structure is! While using mostly loops and electronic techniques they no doubt honed in on for the last two albums, Liars seem to have crafted something "practical" in terms of mainstream music. You can bounce your head to this one.

In terms of sonic quality, the mixes are really dense and filled out, showing off their production skills more than anything. I doubt anything that was recorded stayed the way it was. Parts sound sampled, pieced together, chopped, and manipulated.

The lyrics and aura aren't really any less pretentious, and people certainly aren't getting as excited as they were when they heard "Mr. You're on Fire Mr." but the album definitely sounds like it's for the kids. "Houseclouds" even sounds like Radiohead at certain points and "What Would They Know" most definitely sounds like Joy Division (though very pleasantly so).

I guess I'm less stoked on this new Liars shit than I thought. They're a good group of musicians, and they make good art, it's just not the kind of thing I'm putting on all the time. Maybe the "pop" or "60's garage sound" of this one will change that, but until then, this one's about as inspired as a six-pack of Rolling Rock.