Search - 10,000 Maniacs :: Love Among the Ruins

Superb

Michael J Edelman | Huntington Woods, MI USA | 05/23/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Natalie Merchant may have been the lyrical muse of 10,000 Maniacs, but this album (and Merchant's solo works) show that the compositional genius rested with Buck et al. I bought this album on a whim, not having heard any of it, and I was very plesantly surprised. Even without Merchant's distinctive voice this is very definitely a 10,000 Maniacs album, with all the distinctive melodies and arrangements we expect from the band. It's a pity that the reformed Maniacs haven't gotten the same press that Merchant has, as I think their post-breakup musical output has, in general, been superior to hers."

Stop the comparisons

depthfunction | St. Louis, Missouri USA | 07/31/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I remember, back when this album was released in 1997, hearing a radio DJ, in an attempt to promote the album, proclaim, "Mary Ramsey sounds just like Natalie Merchant!!" And I remember thinking to myself, "No she doesn't; what in the world is he listening to?" Because it was just that kind of comparison, I think, which doomed this lineup of 10,000 Maniacs right from the start.



I will say that Mary Ramsey's voice is just as distinctive as Natalie Merchant's. But it is very different--neither better nor worse--just different. The rest of the band, though, sound like classic Maniacs. Their music reminds me more of their "Blind Man's Zoo" era than anything else.



But what is clear upon listening to this album is not only that Ramsey sounds different from Merchant, but that when Merchant left the band to pursue a solo career, she also took with her the band's social and political consciousness. The songs on this album lack the anti-war, pro-liberal, pro-feminist commentary that the earlier 10,000 Maniacs albums are known for (which demonstrates just how much of a powerful creative influence Merchant had over the band). Instead, we have a dozen of your typical mid-nineties adult-contemporary-style love songs. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but again, it makes for a very different "10,000 Maniacs experience". The songs here are pleasant, upbeat, and catchy.



When Merchant left the band and Ramsey was brought in, the wise thing to do would have been to give this new lineup a different name. That way, they could have had a fresh start without the never-ending (mostly negative) comparisons between Ramsey and Merchant. I think if that had happened, then the former Maniacs might have seen a lot more post-Merchant success than they did.



Because when you strip away all of the old-10,000 Maniacs baggage, when you free this band from their anxiety of influence, when you stop trying to compare Ramsey to Merchant, when you stop trying to compare this album to "Our Time in Eden" or "In My Tribe," when you are willing to listen to this band not as "10,000 Maniacs" but simply as a group of talented musicians, then you find that "Love Among the Ruins" really is a very good album that deserves to be judged by its own merits and not forever compared to a different lineup--indeed, a different band altogether."

10,000 Maniacs Live On

C. Stephans | 03/16/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Thoroughly good cd. The songs are classic Maniacs. Mary Ramsey is a more than adequate replacement for Natalie Merchant. She has a beautiful voice that works nicely with the music. The songs are not quite as stimulating as some of the previous Maniac songs, but are highly enjoyable. Maniac fans will not be disappointed. I certainly an not."