Search - Sister Vanilla :: Little Pop Rock

Can't Stop the Rock...

J. McDaniel | United States | 05/15/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Welp,



Normally I don't review anything on Amazon or anywhere else but just as I suspected it would be this is a great album so I feel compelled to do so. I don't know maybe it's an acquired taste of those who truly appreciate The Jesus and Mary Chain, but I'll file this one away as yet another one of my favorate JAMC albums. But then again which one isn't? However, with Sister Reid fronting the vocals on about half or more of the tracks this time it takes on a new dimension with her significantly impressive and honed vocal skills. A tinge of that Manson Family Album style singing feel comes through on some tracks, "Can't Stop The Rock" being one, which is reminiscent of Munki from which this lineup originated. Great song writing overall in which all Reid siblings partake, although perhaps only the weird out there (myself included) will appreciate the deliberately f****d up and out of time guitar and/or piano break downs in the middle of and at the end of several of the songs. Amazing production that can only be fully realized after a few spins and at maximum volume. Just enough psychedelic JAMC guitar blues to getcha high and plenty of those eighties style JAMC loops and effects thrown in to make you want to wear your dark sunglasses. Plus the piano keys add alot to the mix on several tracks. It's worthy of tour support which although not likely I personally would rather see happen first before any other JAMC reunion tours or albums. Highlights include the opening track "Pastel Blue" a folkly ballad about a spaced out car crash with a strategically placed out of time piano guitar breakdown, the upbeat happy melodic Automatic era sounding "Jamcolas" with again some messed up out of time guitar riffing somehow making it's way through to the end but in a deliberate way, the really smooth and slow slide guitar country ballad "Slacker" which really shows off Sister Linda's vocal abilities, "Delicat", a country stomp rocker with some great lyrics by William, the Munki sounding "Can't Stop the Rock", the slow and super Velvety psychedelic "Kissaround" reminiscent

of some of those Stoned and Dethroned tunes but like on 45 rpm. The staight rocker "Down" has good piano backing and great minimalist wa wa pedal guitar lead. The retro/modern hybrid rockin "TOTP" creates a cool vibe with an even better pyschedelic wa wa guitar lead crescendo. The cover of The Pastels "The Two of Us" at the end is worth the price of admission alone. Just get it; it's the sleeper feel good sounds of the summer.

"

Munki on my back

Grunt Hog | Vancouver, Canada | 11/06/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Sister Vanilla's "Little Pop Rock" sounds like a direct continuation of the musical vibe the Jesus & Mary Chain had going on 1998's "Munki." And that's a big selling point for me, since I found Munki to be one of the JAMC's most varied and playful outings, and Little Pop Rock features all the same musicians and songwriters from that album, making it essentially a JAMC album by any other name.



Whatever band name they put on this disc, it's great pop music throughout. The rockin' tracks sound great with the volume up high, and the mellower acoustic material is shockingly catchy, remaining pleasantly lodged in one's head for days after hearing it. The first two tracks are an awesome one-two punch to kick off the album, and I particularly love the single "Can't Stop the Rock." Its title suggests that it should sound like a balls-out rocker by AC/DC, but it confounds expectations by hitting upon a laid-back stoner-blues vibe that is totally incongruous with the words of the chorus. It's not exactly rocking but the results are wonderfully catchy and dripping with cool. Come to think of it, that kind of sums up much of this disc.



As a final thought, it is possible that the inevitable comparisons to the Jesus & Mary Chain are unfair to the unique merits of Sister Vanilla, who is a fine vocalist and whose voice suits the material on this album very well. But seriously, it's impossible to listen to this disc without thinking "hey, this sounds just like the Jesus & Mary Chain" about every 30 seconds. And for my money, that certainly isn't a bad thing."