|
|
|
BANDS: Punk
& Ska INTERESTS: Venues ETC... About LOTD
|
John McLean: Here Comes An Irregular When John McLean sent us his
new CD to review, he decided on a whim to call it Here Comes an Irregular,
thinking hed try and one up us, seeing as how the name of our publication is Left Off The Dial. (Get
it? Replacements puns?)
John McLeans impulsive naming of his album shows that he doesnt
seem to worry much about piddly stuff like album titles or covers.
Its pretty clear from his vast variety of tastes and influences that
for him, its really just about the music. This
DC artist, in addition to creating the kind of post-new wave/ 80s
rock that youll hear on this disc, also dabbles in reggae and acoustic guitar
on his other recordings. If a return to 1984 by way of
the Cars and Talking Heads is your kind of thing, then this disc is definitely
for you. On songs like the opening
track, Dont Act Surprised and Falling Down High, McLean sounds
like he could have been the long-lost guitar player for Dire Straits.
Most of the songs on this album have some element that is heavily
synthesized. On Dont Think
Now, Run Fast, you can hear what sounds suspiciously like a drum machine, but
I cant really say for sure because there is no real album sleeve for looking
up this information. Other tracks
like Change (in addition to drum machines) make use of keyboard
synthesizers. Here Comes an Irregular
is also characterized by tongue in cheek lyrics and song-titles.
I think my favorite song title in the bunch is I Hear I Have a
Daughter in New Jersey. Also
included on this disc is a cover of If I Only Had a Brain from The Wizard
of Oz, which indeed manages to fit in with the rest of the songs in the
collection. McLean might have you believe hes more influenced by earlier punk acts, but if bands like Dire Straits and the Pretenders still hold a special place in your heart, you should check out this disc at Besonic. If reggaes your thing, try his reggae disc at Ampcast. And if neither of those floats your boat, Im sure John McLean will eventually put out an album that will, so be sure to check back.
LEFT OFF THE DIAL's John McLean page About LOTD Contact/Staff Advertise Home All content © LEFT OFF THE DIAL 2001-2005. All rights reserved. |
