Northern Fights, Southern Loss

Overall Album Score: 8.7 out of 10

Yay!! The Band made a good album! ... Yay!! (I totally skipped reviewing Moondog Matinee ... and that's only because they don't have that one on Rhapsody).

Well, the good news is that The Band has created their best album since The Band (...Well, barring Moondog Matinee that I haven't listened to yet, of course.) The bad news is that they still haven't fully recovered after their slack off in Stage Fright. This is another album with perfectly fine songs in it ... but I don't get the distinct impression that The Band was totally into this product. Of course, they do seem more "into" it compared to Cahoots and Stage Fright. Perhaps that's all I've really been looking for.

At any rate, there's some really nice songs in here. "Acadian Driftwood" is my favorite of these by far with its great melody and wonderfully-done and diverse instrumentation. (Yeah ... and it's a thankful return to Americana!) My second favorite song is probably "Christmas Must Be Tonight," which is an upbeat ode to Jesus's birth. I also enjoy the other upbeat songs in here, namely "Ophelia," "Forbidden Fruit," and "Rags and Bones." ... As far as the rest of the songs go, read the friggin' track reviews! Who do you think I am?

This is a nice album, but it's not something that I get excited about!

Overall Album Score: 8.7 out of 10 (Finally, The Band gives us an album that's a good 'un to listen to! There's many fine songs in here, indeedy.)

Average Song Score: 9.0 (Very nice songs! Quite easily, this is their best collection of tunes since The Band!)

Album Tilt: 8.5 (As much as I like these songs, I never feel this album totally takes off. It also has a problem keeping its momentum.)

Artist Rating: 8.5 (It's unambitious, but nice!)

Track Reviews

Forbidden Fruit 9.5/10

I love this song! Yay!! The melody, for one, is fine 'n' catchy. It rather reminds me of their glory days back in The Band. The instrumentation is not only technically excellent, but also kinda quirky! ... Perhaps the only glaring flaw of the song is its length. Now, did it really need to be six minutes long? Me thinketh not!!!

Hobo Jungle 9/10

Aww... now this is a very pleasant little mid-tempoed song. It doesn't seem like anything that is going to stick with me, but the melody is good. The instruments they chose to play including an accordion-type instrument and an organ-thing and a mandolin-like-thing (I stink at identifying instruments ... I'm not even trying to hide it!) were very nicely chosen and their harmonies lend the song a very beautiful aura. It even manages to get even lovelier as the song goes along. Another fine song from The Band!

Ophelia 9.5/10

Much more succinct and happily upbeat than the previous two songs. It's very tight, very groovy, and a very slick pop song. Maybe even slightly danceable (though this is hardly a disco song or anything). Good tune, too! Hooray!! Get thee to a nunnery!

Acadian Driftwood 10/10

Now this is a song that really manages to stick out at me. When listening to this album (passively) over the past few days, I usually stopped what I was doing and took notice of this tasty little sucker! The melody is very nice'n'catchy (and is completely associated with Americana ... the sound that made them so breathtakingly awesome in The Band). The harmonies here (which employs a vast array of instruments from a recorder to an accordian to violins to ... a lot of stuff. It's more than six minutes long and its great! Hooray!!

Ring Your Bell 8.5/10

More upbeat and party-ful this time. I really enjoy this song in terms of its beat. It does sort of make me want to dance with it! It's slick and happy and ... yay! The melody isn't too super this time, and neither is the instrumentation. It seems sloppier, unfortunately. I don't like that horn-synth, either.

It Makes No Difference 8.5/10

Awww! Now this is a lovely little song. It might be a bit too lengthy, but until it runs out of steam, it's slow and thoughtful. The melody isn't grade-A catchy, but it's quite nice. The vocals sort of get on my nerves here, though (hence the mere score of an 8.5), but The Band's vocals have never been great. They just start to take their toll on you here.

Juniper Hollow 8/10

I really like the bass-line! It's upbeat and fun!! If other aspects of the song weren't so freaking MESSY, then this would have been an excellent song! ... Is this album tapering out or what? Or am I just losing interest in it? ... I liked to praise The Band previously on their instrument-choices, but ... these aren't very good at all. They are getting annoying here! Yikes!

Rags and Bones 9.5/10

Oh, now this is a song that really manages to catch fire!! WHOAH!!! ... I mean, it's no great creation of mid-70s pop, but this is a very enjoyable song with a nice beat, good melody and ... yay! ... solid choices of instrumentation. Nice one!

Twilight 8/10

Eh, 'tis a so-so song. It's slow-paced, rather lovely, but ... hardly one of The Band's best! I like the melody and stuff ... the singing, not ... same old, same old.

Christmas Must Be Tonight 9.5/10

Here's a fun, upbeat song! And it's a nice (and succinct) choice to close the album with! It's a musical tribute to Jesus's birth ... and ... good melody, good rhythm-work ... good song! ... FWARRGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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