Old 97’s
The Grand Theatre, Vol. 1
Since the early ’90s, Rhett Miller and company have been pumping out thoroughly unthreatening songs that fill an alternative country niche. Rhett’s band, the Old 97’s, has hardly deviated from that straightforward path. With modest success, they have continued producing their rather pleasant, if plain, alternative rock and country fusions. Their latest release is no different; The Grand Theatre, Vol. 1 unleashes the band’s tried-and-true guitar riffs and arrangements, with few attempts at changing it up with different instrumentation.
The album never gets bumpy — the Old 97’s keep the pacing, lyrics and song structure on an even (albeit boring) keel. Case in point: the most common phrase in the song “Every Night is Friday Night (Without You)” is “Every night is Friday night without you.” Despite such repetition, the tune is still catchy, and the smooth, pleasing vocals on the very country “You Were Born to Be in Battle” more than makes up for this redundancy later.
Your ears might also perk up when the 97’s surprise listeners with an incredibly appealing and revitalizing piano intro to “You Smoke Too Much.” Unfortunately, this element drops out quickly and completely; the song then devolves into a standard-sounding 97’s guitar line.
The album’s biggest highlight, however, is “Please Hold On While the Train is Moving.” The up-tempo track kicks off with a fairly standard country intro, but is soon replaced with a cool synthesized guitar buzz and new rhythm that brings both contrast and an undeniable groove. Too bad that twangy electric sound doesn’t stick around for longer — it’s only a short interlude before the album moves to its final song: the dull, bare and overdramatic “The Beauty Marks.”
Like any other album, The Grand Theatre, Vol. 1 has some gems and some trash. The Old 97’s succeed most when they throw something new and unexpected into the pot; unfortunately, that happens at an alarmingly low rate. The band seems resistant to change and content to spoil in its traditional style. The thing is, after 17 years, it’s about time we heard some New 97’s.
(6/10)