Living With The Living

I took an unplanned vacation this morning and slept in until ten. Then, when holding the covers over my head would not change the world, I called my boss and asked her if it was really necessary that I come in. She said yes and the covers really weren't helping. I did discover that you actually can buy sleep in the form of vacation hours while you sleep in on a Friday. It's kind of sad when the e-mail is postmarked at 2:00 AM, though. Oh shit, I think I ate Jack in the Box last night and told all of my secrets to someone while I was drinking. Whatevs. Seriously, if you want to know anything about me put two Ketel and sodas in me and sit me on a bar stool and be kinda cute. It goes like this: "Blah Blah Blah Blah Blah Blah Blah."

Now, I just need to figure out where I got these momjeans that I'm wearing. Irregardless, a few things need to be covered this morning. I actually purchased the new Ted Leo album a couple of days ago. Why? Him and the Pharmacists deserve it. Plus, it spares me the work of going to the show when he is in town and giving the merch guy twenty bucks to clear my conscience. To be completely honest, I was a little let down by his show at Noisepop this year, but there's no denying the guy is good.

First of all, the album is called Living With The Living and is available from iTunes for $9.99, however if you buy it in your local record store...scratch that, those are all gone. Go buy it at Borders for way too much and you get a bonus CD which I don't have. There is a Chumbawumba cover on it that really got the indie writers abuzz. I haven't heard it. So, anyway, the album overall totally goes political, but also has some songs that show the other side of current events and touches on the issue that at the end of the day we are all just people trying to get by. This topic was also explored in the theme song from Good Times and countless Curtis Mayfield songs. Here are the tracks:
1. Fourth World War - Ambience that leads into Sons of Cain

2. Sons of Cain - I'm actually getting bible references now and technically, if the bible is correct we are all children of Cain and products of incest, as well. It's your book, not mine. Good song. This one has been plugging up pipes on the Internet for a while now. He played it live on KEXP. Also, it is not a truck.

3. Army Bound - I think this is a really cool song. The change from the intro to the verse is a trip and makes no sense musically, but totally works. Classic Ted Leo. Sounds like the Pretenders, Joe Jackson and Joe Strummer put into a magic bullet. Listen to this and put on a pair of old Chuck Taylor's and old jeans and gaze at your fucking shoes.

4. Who Do You Love? - Three times in the song you think you are listening to I Fought The Law. I swear. It's cool, though. He mellows out a few times on this album and plays music very soothingly. Always has that rad change to the chorus, though. Always. He's a good writer. He likes to build you up and then drop you down in a very dynamic way. This song has a lot of it.

5. Colleen - Am I seriously going to review this fucking album song by song? So, Colleen, second in a series with Me and Mia from the last album. Ted Leo is now required to write a song about a chick on every album. This song gets your head bobbing, though. Great harmony a la Hearts of Oak Ted Leo. One of the Pharmacists used to be a chick. Good and tasteful guitar solo that works as a song within in song with a beginning, middle and end. That's how you write 'em if you are keeping score at home.

6. A Bottle of Buckie - This song starts out just like the One Who Got Us Out from Shake The Sheets or Don't Fear The Reaper by BOC. A song about hanging out in Jersey and towns where people grew up and visiting old friends. I'd imagine there is a sage-like older gentleman somewhere in the song, too. What the f? There is a penny whistle in the song. Yep, there's the sage-like dude at 1:52 in. Cool song, though. It goes on your chill out mixtape to impress the chick who works at Borders and reads Bukowski. The mixtape is so back, by the way, in the form of an iTunes playlist.

7. Bomb.Repeat.Bomb - Is fuuuuuuuuuuucking awesome. This is worth the price of admission. It starts out all disjointed with over the top messages about the war that could be taken as satire or dogma depending on the color of your state and education level. The song builds around the people who say "Just bomb the fuck out of 'em" without really thinking it through. On the other hand, it expresses how fucked up it is that so many kids are getting killed on the ground over there. Anyway, no soapboxing today. Serious, when it goes from the scratchy guitar to the big chorus, I almost tear up. I had sex once. Seriously, only once and when my counterpart got to where she was going, she started weeping. It was super weird, but the memory sticks with me. Crying and sex. Nuts and Gum. Orange Juice and Toothpaste. Think about it.

8. La Costa Brava - The album is pretty strong right here. Awesome song to listen to on a beach in Mexico. The song just cruises along and says take a breather and forget about the crap on the news everyday and just slow the fuck down. There is a reason that you get out of bed everyday and there is good in people and peace out there if you can find it. I like this one. It also sounds like a really good burrito. You should really visit that link right there.

9. Annunciation Day/Born On Christmas - What's up poetry slam guy? Oh, it resolves like a goddamn Queen song 55 seconds into it. Holy crap, this is a Queen song for a minute. I like that. Freddie Mercury was the coolest gay guy ever and you can quote me on that. John Oates is the second coolest. Short and sweet. This song is cool, it could have been expanded on.

10. The Unwanted Thing - I hated this song live. His guitar tone kills on this song. It's a semi-hollow Gibson played through a Fender Blackface and I'm going to guess a small stone phaser. I could be wrong, but I really like it. There's got to be someone doing the paw on a keyboard behind it, too. This song has a time and place, but it's not here and now. There is a whole vacation vein of music on this album. It's a good song, it's just not my thing.

11. The Lost Brigade - This song gets all Camaro rock at the beginning. This is very 70s rock and has a little more studio magic than previous albums. This song moves. It feels like you are on a treadmill when you listen to it. This has gotta be what a dog feels like with its head out of a car window. It's because there are accents on the upbeats. Really cool bass line on this one. They are definitely channeling some Blue Oyster Cult right here. Totally random note, but wouldn't it be awesome if they based a movie on the Atari game Defender? It would be like Choplifter in space. So sick. Choplifter you will not be forgotten.

12. The World Stops Turning - Thin Lizzy. Straight up. Boys Are Back in Town. No brainer. Changes it up in the chorus. Good chorus. Bridge brings it down. Name drops pricks and hacks. This is a good one. Seriously, writing about every song is so excessive and unnecessary, but I'm on 12 out of 16, so I have to finish. Ted Leo has mastered writing guitar solos that are tasteful. There is one on this song.

13. Some Beginner's Mind - Ted posted a bunch of practice sessions for the album on his site, so this has been on the Interwebs, as well. His voice sounds like The Outfield on this song. It makes me think of Josie. It's got that epic bass drum drone at the beginning paired with chords that have to be played with Pete Townsend pinwheels. It's a'ight.

14. The Toro and the Toreador - I thought it might be about a Toro lawnmower, but it's not. This song does not rock, but if you are into tremeloed out guitars and crooning, this song is for you. He says animus in this song. Gets kinda Beatlesy on this one two minutes into it. It might not be that bad. Oh, wait for it...it started rocking.

15. C.I.A. - This is the first time I've gotten this deep into the album. One word for this song: Guantanamo. Very simple song built mostly to support a message of thoughtful and insightful lyrics. Ted Leo has a fuckin' message.

16. The Vain Parade - Lo-fi. Sounds like an old Samhain recording, production wise. Like a boombox. 1970s reggae on an acoustic guitar. Cool, though. Good way to wrap up an album. It fades into a barrage of noise and distortion.

So, that's it kids. I'm wiped. I have nothing to say anymore. The album is worth buying and I'm sure as I listen to it more, the lyrics will give me more messages. This album did not jar me like Shake The Sheets and Hearts of Oak did, but that may be because I'm building up a tolerance to Ted Leo. It's comparable to the first time I heard Pet Sounds or East bay Grease. It's a life changing event that can never be recreated.

Update: Bomb.Repeat.Bomb video on Pitchfork.