My review - **SPOILERS about songs**

[Guitarman1972]

Listened to the Glasgow recording on Youtube imho the Amsterdam recoding is way better soundwise and vocally. Still need to listen to Birmingham, but that one is not easy to find.

[superval99]

Listened to the Glasgow recording on Youtube imho the Amserdam recoding is way better soundwise and vocally. Still need to listen to Birmingham, but that one is not easy to find.

My favourite is Manchester.

[Guitarman1972]

For the people who haven't heard the HFB Amsterdam recording from June 28, 2010:


(Video is from Rome and audio from Amsterdam)

[Love Expresso]

This is pretty off-topic. Just saying.

LE

[Love Expresso]

JF, by the way, did you detect the National on the new album? You know the story about this guitar appearing on every album.

LE

[JF]

JF, by the way, did you detect the National on the new album? You know the story about this guitar appearing on every album.

LE

Now you ask it, indeed I don't remember any National guitar sounds. And I'm quite sure I would have noticed it if I had heard it. Maybe on bonus tracks ? 

indeed it appears on every album until GH, played by Mark, but after :
on STP it's on Junkie doll but played by Richard ? (at least he played it live)
on TRD, there a national slide guitar on old pigweed, but I guess it's Richard's one, the one with a square neck that he plays on his laps, not Mark's one
the same on SL on all that matters

it appears again on ATRR on donkey town
then also on KTGC on heart full of holes ans fish and the bird (an maybe on fizzy and the still ? , not sure)

I think GL hasn't got any national guitar

Privateering features the national on Haul away and radio city serenade

And on tracker, I don't remember right now

so indeed the guitar appears on almost all albums, but not exactly all

[Robson]

JF in how many songs the slide technique play?

[mschaap]

Thanks for all the info and opinions on the new album JF!
Are there any piano or hammond soli on the new album?
As for the National, to my ears it sounds like Mark on the regular National on Old Pigweed and I think Haul Away was played on the Martin acoustic insteed of the National on the studio version.
Which are your favourite songs from the new album right now? And why?

[JF]

JF in how many songs the slide technique play?

only on one song : Just A Boy Away From Home

[Love Expresso]

JF in how many songs the slide technique play?

only on one song : Just A Boy Away From Home

That's good news!!!   

LE

[Robson]

JF in how many songs the slide technique play?

only on one song : Just A Boy Away From Home

I am surprised

[JF]

Are there any piano or hammond soli on the new album?

Nice piano licks (not really a "solo" though) on the two jazzy tunes : when you leave and slow learner
piano "riff" on the outro on My bacon roll
"strong" piano on Drover"s road, but no solo
gorgeous piano on floating away; the outro blends piano, guitar and organ/synth, beautiful !

organ intro on one song at a time, tone is a little bit like on our shangri-la

As for the National, to my ears it sounds like Mark on the regular National on Old Pigweed

You mean on slide ? I would rather bet for Richard on lap, but just speculation of course

Which are your favourite songs from the new album right now? And why?

very hard to choose. I like them all, but I think because they are new for my ears
My top 5 would be : trapper man, back on the dance floor, floating away, nobody does that, slow learner
but also one song at a time, nobody"s child

at the start of the week, I tent to skip Good on you son, because it wasn't "new" like other songs, but now I love listen to it, it fits very well in the album's dynamics


why these songs ?
trapper man, back on the dance floor, nobody does that, and good on you son, because they sounds "modern", "fresh", "active", great in the car or on bike ! and to my ears they have a Dire Straits flavour. I love when Mark plays acoustic folk, but I think it was a little bit too much on Tracker. Here it sounds like he's rocking again ! (be carreful with my words, it's all relative, I mean that in mark's world of course.. )
slow learner and when you leave, very touching, beautiful music
Floating away : that's Mark's laid-back style ! music between six blade knife, blood and water, and someday. I love this kind of ambiance ala JJ cale

[JF]

difficult for me to describe but here is another argument :

this morning, I put the album in the car, and my second daughter (who knows a little bit MK and likes very much songs like border reiver, piper at he end, LAJADAS, Bonaparte, going home...yes, all the  irish/scottish stuff) said something like : "hey it's not his current style, he did not that on pevious albums, it's cool, I like it very much !"
She is 18 years old, and she listens to music from his generation, but also to classic rock music

what I want to say is that someone who is not a MK fan, but listens to him occasionnaly noticed immediately that this album sounds "new" and "fresh"


An yes you can kill me : my daughter heard the new MK album before you....

[robin]

JF, would you adopt me ?

[JF]

JF, would you adopt me ?