Do we really want a new Fleetwood Mac album?

[RockawayBlind]

Originally Posted by elle

the other thing that i find interesting is that some of the people who complain about uneven production on GOS or SYW like it's the worst crime in the universe have no problem with very unevenly sounding songs on This is 40, if one actually listens to the whole soundtrack and not just LB's songs.

I think this is apples and oranges. I can't speak for anyone else, but when I have made references to This Is 40 songs, I am talking specifically about Lindsey's tracks. I'm not sure I have paid that much attention to the other stuff, to be honest. When you compare the soundtrack's Lindsey songs to his production since Cradle, the evidence is there for all to hear that Lindsey has gone way, way too far with the studio tricks.

Another point I would make is that uneven production is typical of movie soundtracks. When you think about it, you are often pulling together already-released songs that might have been produced very differently.

[RockawayBlind]

Originally Posted by elle

that's another thing that confuses me - do the same people who love This is 40 songs so much really dislike an EP song like It Takes Time, which is just as sparse (but to me actually sounds much less lazy)? i guess they'd like LB to stick with his guitar and not try something new like a piano-based song?

songs on the EP are so different from each other with SA vs ITT vs WY being on such different parts of the spectrum, that other than uneven production (i'm guessing that happened because the EP idea came in at the last moment, since originally just SA and MF were going to be released as separate tracks for dl), i just don't get how one can put them all in the same basket.

The production is uneven in the EP and the songs are subpar. So it's a combination of things. Yes, Lindsey's This Is 40 songs are simpler than what we have become accustomed to from him, and they are repetitious, but they are well crafted and pleasing to the ear, harkening back to some of the best pop stuff that Lindsey has done over the years. Honestly, the EP tracks are kind of embarrassing.

[TrueFaith77]

Originally Posted by RockawayBlind

I think this is apples and oranges. I can't speak for anyone else, but when I have made references to This Is 40 songs, I am talking specifically about Lindsey's tracks. I'm not sure I have paid that much attention to the other stuff, to be honest. When you compare the soundtrack's Lindsey songs to his production since Cradle, the evidence is there for all to hear that Lindsey has gone way, way too far with the studio tricks.

I agree. I think it kinda works on Under the Skin because it's a concept album in that regard, but GOS and, especially, SWS have major problems. Sometimes sublimely gorgeous (When She Came Down) but sometimes not. And even on UTS it killed two songs that showed themselves to be peak modern Lindsey when performed live. Biggest problem: the whisper vocals and the synth percussion tracks. Both these qualities are blessedly not present on the This is 40 songs. It's just astonishing to hear Lindsey's vocals recorded straight--and for them to be so lovely.

[RockawayBlind]

Originally Posted by aleuzzi

Any new work by any of these people should be seen for what it is--a gift.

That is a valid way to look at it, from a fan's perspective. But there is a lot of good music out there. A lot. If you know where to look, you can find really amazing stuff. Just because radio today only plays overproduced, formulaic crap, we tend to forget there's a lot more that we don't hear. So, if FM is going to do something with artistic integrity, as opposed to just trying to get played on the radio because it's an obsession for them, we might get a good collection of songs. Otherwise, the results will be bland and uninteresting. And that would really be a waste.

[elle]

Originally Posted by RockawayBlind

when I have made references to This Is 40 songs, I am talking specifically about Lindsey's tracks. I'm not sure I have paid that much attention to the other stuff, to be honest.

thought so.

Originally Posted by RockawayBlind

Another point I would make is that uneven production is typical of movie soundtracks. When you think about it, you are often pulling together already-released songs that might have been produced very differently.

yes. i think i remember Apatow making a point about that being exact reason why he had a single producer working on all the tracks, so that wouldn't happen.

maybe also why he wanted it to be sold just as a whole, instead of individual tracks. seems it didn't help much - many Fiona's fans were listening to her track only, Norah's to hers, Ryan's to his, Lindsey's to his...

[elle]

Originally Posted by RockawayBlind

That is a valid way to look at it, from a fan's perspective. But there is a lot of good music out there. A lot. If you know where to look, you can find really amazing stuff. Just because radio today only plays overproduced, formulaic crap, we tend to forget there's a lot more that we don't hear. So, if FM is going to do something with artistic integrity, as opposed to just trying to get played on the radio because it's an obsession for them, we might get a good collection of songs. Otherwise, the results will be bland and uninteresting. And that would really be a waste.

yes. and discussing what you do or do not like and why is very different from saying "my favorite band has just put out some new material, but i've never heard it and i don't want to because i have no doubt it's crap".

i agree that obsessing about radio play at this stage of their career is absurd. hope they are not. did David Bowie get much radio play last year? i don't think so. he still received a lot of accolades and respect for his album. FM should do whatever they want to, not whatever they think will be "commercial", both Mick and Lindsey were clear about that. the problem may be that different people in that band may want very different things, and their internal compromising to get to the sum of the parts may lead to results that may be bland or uninteresting. but i still would like to hear those, and would consider them a gift, as a fan.

(and i would like all that to happen fast, so that LB can go back to doing stuff that i really would love to hear, and that he should be doing anyway, since he's not getting any younger.)

[aleuzzi]

Originally Posted by RockawayBlind

That is a valid way to look at it, from a fan's perspective. But there is a lot of good music out there. A lot. If you know where to look, you can find really amazing stuff. Just because radio today only plays overproduced, formulaic crap, we tend to forget there's a lot more that we don't hear. So, if FM is going to do something with artistic integrity, as opposed to just trying to get played on the radio because it's an obsession for them, we might get a good collection of songs. Otherwise, the results will be bland and uninteresting. And that would really be a waste.

This ain't my first rodeo. I've been listening to music for years and know where to look in all sorts of places.

That said, I stand by my original statement: any new music by these five people should be seen for what it is--a gift. I don't think for a minute their new material will disappoint, artistically or otherwise. Yes, I am a fan. I would imagine all of us on this site are fans!

[RockawayBlind]

Originally Posted by elle

thought so.


yes. i think i remember Apatow making a point about that being exact reason why he had a single producer working on all the tracks, so that wouldn't happen.

maybe also why he wanted it to be sold just as a whole, instead of individual tracks. seems it didn't help much - many Fiona's fans were listening to her track only, Norah's to hers, Ryan's to his, Lindsey's to his...

Well, there were previously released songs, so naturally there would have been differences in production no matter what.

[SteveMacD]

I'd love to hear them do a proper version of this.

[On Ice]

I'd love to hear them do a proper version of this.

Nice find! I can totally see her loving this style.

[aleuzzi]

Originally Posted by SteveMacD

I'd love to hear them do a proper version of this.

Those first four chords are close, if not identical to the first four chords of Remember Me.

[Johnny Stew]

Originally Posted by michelej1

Her defeatist comments after TISL failed to sell and her claim that poor sales were the result of fans stealing the music did not encourage me to think that that's not how she reacts to low-selling records. But she bucked up and put out IYD anyway and has fought for it. Good for her.

Those are two different things, though. Her expressing disappointment in 'TISL's' sales, and trying to find a reason that it didn't sell as well, isn't the same as disowning an album simply because it didn't move millions of copies. My point was, she still loves that album (and 'In Your Dreams') either way.

I do agree that she probably has different expectations for Fleetwood Mac's album sales. Record execs and fans do as well. For Stevie, I'm guessing it then became a question of, "is it worth the tension and conflicts to record with Fleetwood Mac, if I can do nearly as well with my own albums and without the stress?"

[michelej1]

Originally Posted by Johnny Stew

Those are two different things, though. Her expressing disappointment in 'TISL's' sales, and trying to find a reason that it didn't sell as well, isn't the same as disowning an album simply because it didn't move millions of copies. My point was, she still loves that album (and 'In Your Dreams') either way.

She didn't disown TISL, but she expressed a bitterness about the lack of sales that reinforced my belief that she will dislike any FM album that doesn't sell. I don't think this behavior is isolated to just Street Angel.

Michele

[Johnny Stew]

Originally Posted by michelej1

She didn't disown TISL, but she expressed a bitterness about the lack of sales that reinforced my belief that she will dislike any FM album that doesn't sell. I don't think this behavior is isolated to just Street Angel.

Question -- when she was telling every interviewer in the Northern Hemisphere that there was "no reason to make an album, people will just steal it," did she ever specifically mention 'Trouble In Shangri-La?'"

I'm only asking because I honestly don't remember her citing 'TISL' as an example in that reasoning.

[michelej1]

Originally Posted by Johnny Stew

Question -- when she was telling every interviewer in the Northern Hemisphere that there was "no reason to make an album, people will just steal it," did she ever specifically mention 'Trouble In Shangri-La?'"

I'm only asking because I honestly don't remember her citing 'TISL' as an example in that reasoning.

I don't think she ever said, "People stole TISL," but when asked why she didn't make another solo album after TISL -- she cited theft. Those interview comments came after she did Caesar's and were usually not related to why she wasn't making another FM album. They were about her solo work.

At any rate, they didn't make me think she wasn't bitter about low sales and looking to blame someone for them. Michele