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Post by kds on Apr 7, 2022 13:49:06 GMT
We didn't know it at the time, but NPP marked the end of a surprising prolific era for Brian. From 1998 (when his solo career was relaunched) to 2015, Brian released eight studio albums, and one with The Beach Boys. Plus a few live albums, six DVDs (I think? Imagination, PS Live, On Tour, BWPS doc, TLOS doc, and NPP show), and maybe most surprisingly, more or less constant touring. Whatever one thinks of the music or his performances, nobody can say he wasn't active.
I really have mixed feelings about NPP. There are things I like very much about it, but it also felt to me at the time (and still does) like the team was hiding Brian's shortcomings, whether by guest stars, autotuning type treatment (avoiding the controversy by not using the brand name!), blending vocal tracks to help those high notes feel like they were more his than they were, etc. I thought he personally sounded weak not just on his higher parts, but just shaky in general, even in the lower range.
This was the time, I think, when I honestly hoped he kept releasing music with other people doing all or most of the singing. I know many, many fans disagree, but I'd rather hear Darian Sahanaja, Al or Matt Jardine, etc., singing those leads, with Brian writing and arranging. I'd thought about that idea throughout his post-98 career, but this is where I really began feeling convinced of it. Obviously wouldn't happen ... and we've gotten more or less nothing new since.
For the most part, I think NPP is a pretty good later career album. It does feel a little too crowded with guests at times, and not being a fan of all of their styles, it makes for a pretty disjointed listening experience. I do agree that having others do some of the vocals is a good idea for Brian at this stage, particular if those leads are kept within the Brian Wilson Band as you noted. I know I've probably been somewhat critical of Brian's later era releases, but overall, I'm pretty happy with his output in that 1998-2015 era, especially considering the quality of some of the stuff he was writing in the 1970s and 1980s.
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Post by Kapitan on Apr 7, 2022 13:56:35 GMT
I know I've probably been somewhat critical of Brian's later era releases, but overall, I'm pretty happy with his output in that 1988-2015 era, especially considering the quality of some of the stuff he was writing in the 1970s and 1980s. I'd second that.
Whoever decided to return to more organic instrumentation and fewer attempts at "modern" production--Brian himself, his touring band, his management, or some combination thereof--I really appreciated that direction, which began (on studio albums) with GIOMH, I think they made the right decision.
Many disagree, but I always thought Brian's attempts to modernize in the '80s sounded ridiculous, and the Joe Thomas efforts on Imagination were a kind of improvement, but also so adult contemporary/atmospheric/cheesy/EZ listening as to be nauseating in their own way (despite some pretty good content).
While the sometimes blatant pastiche of "Brian Wilson sound" was annoying in its own way, too, I appreciated that for the most part, we didn't get 15 years of "Runaway Dancer." We got albums with drums played by drummers, pianos played by pianists, etc. They sounded reasonable coming from Brian Wilson. And while the material included rehashes, "suitcase songs" (as I think David Leaf called them in some liner notes), by-numbers stuff, etc., it also had some really good stuff.
In fact, the Beatles thread has helped nudge me to something I don't think I would've said a year ago: Brian Wilson has had a better career from 1998 onward than has Paul McCartney. I'd still say Macca's post-60s career overall is better, because he was on fire much of the 70s and some of the 80s and 90s. But since 1998? I'd prefer Wilson's albums.
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Post by kds on Apr 7, 2022 14:07:34 GMT
I know I've probably been somewhat critical of Brian's later era releases, but overall, I'm pretty happy with his output in that 1988-2015 era, especially considering the quality of some of the stuff he was writing in the 1970s and 1980s. I'd second that.
Whoever decided to return to more organic instrumentation and fewer attempts at "modern" production--Brian himself, his touring band, his management, or some combination thereof--I really appreciated that direction, which began (on studio albums) with GIOMH, I think they made the right decision.
Many disagree, but I always thought Brian's attempts to modernize in the '80s sounded ridiculous, and the Joe Thomas efforts on Imagination were a kind of improvement, but also so adult contemporary/atmospheric/cheesy/EZ listening as to be nauseating in their own way (despite some pretty good content).
While the sometimes blatant pastiche of "Brian Wilson sound" was annoying in its own way, too, I appreciated that for the most part, we didn't get 15 years of "Runaway Dancer." We got albums with drums played by drummers, pianos played by pianists, etc. They sounded reasonable coming from Brian Wilson. And while the material included rehashes, "suitcase songs" (as I think David Leaf called them in some liner notes), by-numbers stuff, etc., it also had some really good stuff.
In fact, the Beatles thread has helped nudge me to something I don't think I would've said a year ago: Brian Wilson has had a better career from 1998 onward than has Paul McCartney. I'd still say Macca's post-60s career overall is better, because he was on fire much of the 70s and some of the 80s and 90s. But since 1998? I'd prefer Wilson's albums.
I've always said that I prefer Brian's later output to Paul's. The last Macca album I really enjoy (Flaming Pie) actually predates Brian's late era. I also agree about Brian ditching that 80s sound. But, I hinted on this in the Beatles thread, that the 21st Century seemed to be a time when a lot of legacy artists rid themselves of modern trends, and released more organic sounding material.
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Post by Kapitan on May 12, 2022 17:26:17 GMT
While checking the NPP wiki entry for some details on the album, I noticed a link to this review. It's mostly about the lyrics to the album, and I have to say, I'm more annoyed by this review than almost any other I can think of at the moment. To me, this is the epitome of "this isn't good because in my imagination [no pun intended], Brian would be doing something else."
He's not singing about important enough subjects. He's not being sufficiently specific about his own life. Indeed, the reviewer actually blames Wilson for this album, saying it is "the latest and most egregious dereliction of the duty Wilson has as an artist to offer something that can make a difference — no matter how modest — to our lives." Uhhh...his duty is nil. Squat. He has no duty. He owes you, reviewer (and us, dear fans) literally nothing.
And seriously, imagine writing this about a Brian Wilson record: "These frustrating instances of dislocated vagueness and vague dislocation all represent the septuagenarian’s unwillingness to engage with the world on any level, to involve and associate himself with tangible social causes, circumstances, and crowds, and in the end, they all equate to a refusal to say anything of any relevance for the lives people actually lead and the environments they actually inhabit."
I mean, honestly: "Warbling such inanities as “Saturday night on Hollywood Boulevard/ Hanging around with nothing to do-ooo-ooo” is galling enough at the best of times, but when this happens during an era in which there are innumerable issues, predicaments, and topics an artist could usefully address, it seems irresponsible, even criminally misleading."
It all strikes me as an example of somebody taking himself too seriously, and being upset that a pop record doesn't take him or itself similarly seriously.
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Post by kds on May 12, 2022 17:32:24 GMT
While checking the NPP wiki entry for some details on the album, I noticed a link to this review. It's mostly about the lyrics to the album, and I have to say, I'm more annoyed by this review than almost any other I can think of at the moment. To me, this is the epitome of "this isn't good because in my imagination [no pun intended], Brian would be doing something else."
He's not singing about important enough subjects. He's not being sufficiently specific about his own life. Indeed, the reviewer actually blames Wilson for this album, saying it is "the latest and most egregious dereliction of the duty Wilson has as an artist to offer something that can make a difference — no matter how modest — to our lives." Uhhh...his duty is nil. Squat. He has no duty. He owes you, reviewer (and us, dear fans) literally nothing.
And seriously, imagine writing this about a Brian Wilson record: "These frustrating instances of dislocated vagueness and vague dislocation all represent the septuagenarian’s unwillingness to engage with the world on any level, to involve and associate himself with tangible social causes, circumstances, and crowds, and in the end, they all equate to a refusal to say anything of any relevance for the lives people actually lead and the environments they actually inhabit."
I mean, honestly: "Warbling such inanities as “Saturday night on Hollywood Boulevard/ Hanging around with nothing to do-ooo-ooo” is galling enough at the best of times, but when this happens during an era in which there are innumerable issues, predicaments, and topics an artist could usefully address, it seems irresponsible, even criminally misleading."
It all strikes me as an example of somebody taking himself too seriously, and being upset that a pop record doesn't take him or itself similarly seriously.
I'm surprised that reviewer is even aware of songs like California Girls and Surfer Girl.
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Post by Kapitan on May 12, 2022 18:51:33 GMT
And really, even if he is derelict in his duty of "involv[ing] and associat[ing] himself with tangible social causes, circumstances, and crowds" and "refus[ing] to say anything of any relevance for the lives people actually lead and the environments they actually inhabit," there is one reasonable aspect of his "duty" (though again, I say he has none) that none of this lyrics-obsessed, pretentious drivel takes into account:
Spreading emotions through music.
Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys were never the kind of band that would regularly make you furrow your brow, scratch your chin, and utter ponderous "hmmms" over their lyrics. In my opinion, most of their attempts at seriousness were mistakes. There wasn't usually a lot of deeply personal material, either (serious nor not). And while Brian, especially when he was unwell, might have occasionally written some of that kind of thing, he was probably twice as likely to say "when girls get made at boys and go / many times they're just puttin' on a show," or even "a cigarette butt when you throw it in the water goes pfft." Oh, the deep wisdom of "when guests are boring he picks up the slack / the network makes him break his back"!
Brian Wilson's gift is overwhelmingly musical. Melodies, harmonies, arrangements. And even when he's not at the top of his game, as he inarguably was not when he was an older man creating NPP, if you're going to find your life touched by his work, it is most likely largely from that. From the music. So "Saturday Night" is bad because it has the singer "hanging around with nothin' to do" rather than reversing global warming or fighting against oppression, or whatever worthy cause it's apparently supposed to address? What about the fact that it's fun to listen to, fun to sing along with? What about that? Isn't that the opposite of a dereliction of duty? Isn't that giving someone his money's worth, a songwriter giving a song that brings joy into people's lives?
I'm not sure why it got under my skin so much, but it really did. Maybe because it's one of those examples that's mostly about the writer and his expectations (demands?) of the artist rather than the music itself.
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Post by kds on May 12, 2022 19:16:52 GMT
And really, even if he is derelict in his duty of "involv[ing] and associat[ing] himself with tangible social causes, circumstances, and crowds" and "refus[ing] to say anything of any relevance for the lives people actually lead and the environments they actually inhabit," there is one reasonable aspect of his "duty" (though again, I say he has none) that none of this lyrics-obsessed, pretentious drivel takes into account:
Spreading emotions through music.
Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys were never the kind of band that would regularly make you furrow your brow, scratch your chin, and utter ponderous "hmmms" over their lyrics. In my opinion, most of their attempts at seriousness were mistakes. There wasn't usually a lot of deeply personal material, either (serious nor not). And while Brian, especially when he was unwell, might have occasionally written some of that kind of thing, he was probably twice as likely to say "when girls get made at boys and go / many times they're just puttin' on a show," or even "a cigarette butt when you throw it in the water goes pfft." Oh, the deep wisdom of "when guests are boring he picks up the slack / the network makes him break his back"!
Brian Wilson's gift is overwhelmingly musical. Melodies, harmonies, arrangements. And even when he's not at the top of his game, as he inarguably was not when he was an older man creating NPP, if you're going to find your life touched by his work, it is most likely largely from that. From the music. So "Saturday Night" is bad because it has the singer "hanging around with nothin' to do" rather than reversing global warming or fighting against oppression, or whatever worthy cause it's apparently supposed to address? What about the fact that it's fun to listen to, fun to sing along with? What about that? Isn't that the opposite of a dereliction of duty? Isn't that giving someone his money's worth, a songwriter giving a song that brings joy into people's lives?
I'm not sure why it got under my skin so much, but it really did. Maybe because it's one of those examples that's mostly about the writer and his expectations (demands?) of the artist rather than the music itself.
I don't get it either. The writer just seems to be the type of fop who'll go a bar, openly and loudly question why in the world anyone would lower themselves to playing Journey on the jukebox, while also berating patrons who are drinking Miller Lite instead craft beer. Dude, relax, not everything needs to be high art.
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