(It (Is) It) Critical Band (Southern)
Review by Dan Eldridge
Resonance, 02/01/01
Inventiveness and originality. It's what most fans of Chicago-style post-punk tend to expect from new releases on Southern Records, an outfit that consistently pumps out quality music from bands that seem to have a special knack for creating truly influential albums. Unlike many of their contemporaries, though, it seems that the 90 Day Men have chosen not to take the road less traveled; while the overall theme of their first full-length may speak of intelligence, the music itself is cliched at its best, tiring and mediocre at its worst. It's perfectly clear that the 90 Day Men play the sort of music typically applauded by math-rockers: guitar distortion lost in feedback, off-key vocals, bizarre time signatures. What isn't so clear, though, is why they've chosen to have nothing new or different jump out of the mix. Of course, music that's old hat to one critic is an angel's aria to the next, and other claim that it takes numerous listens to fall in love with this album. Here's your chance to give it a shot.