Yes it’s been awhile since my last review but you know life. Anyway on the chopping block today is another request and the band is Jane’s Addiction. Now I have only heard one or two songs so I am not too familiar with the rest of their stuff. I feel like I have seen them live back in like 2003 but honestly can’t remember. So let’s take a look………..
Jane’s Addiction- so this is a first. The actual debut album is in fact a live album. Now I’m not sure why they went this route but it’s definitely interesting. I will say that this is a good live album and the recording isn’t all crappy like a lot of early 80’s albums are. It’s got some of their hits like Jane Says. There is even a cover of Sympathy For The Devil but I don’t think it’s very good. I give it 9/10
Standouts: Whores, Trip Away, 1%
Nothing’s Shocking- if I was in the production room during the recording of this album I’d would say to TURN DOWN THE REVERB on the first couple songs. Other than that, this a great straight forward hard record. If you can get past that whole reality tv stuff you’ll see that Dave Navarro is actually a really good guitar player (or just listen to One Hot Minute by RHCP). Seriously I was a little apprehensive going forward because some people can’t stand Perry Farrell’s voice but so far it’s not bad. There are a couple of boring moments but they are far and few between. Definitely check this album out if you want a good hard rock record. I’ll give this 10/10
Standouts: Had A Dad, Pigs In Zen, Standing In The Shower…….Thinking
Ritual De Lo Habitual- this one is interesting because the first 6 or so songs are hard rock songs and the rest are softer songs. I think I read somewhere that the last few songs are about Perry Farrell’s deceased girlfriend so that does make sense. But like the last album, it’s a good rock record and is definitely a worthy follow up. I give this one 10/10
Standouts: Classic Girl, No One’s Leaving, Stop
Kettle Whistle- this is basically a bunch of live, unreleased, and rare tracks. It’s pretty good but if you are really curious or a die hard fan you’ll appreciate this one a lot more. Definitely worth checking out and I give it 8/10
Standouts: So What!, Mountain Song (demo version), Had A Dad-Studio Outtake
Strays- this one I’d say is kind of uneven. The positives on this are that for the harder songs, the riffs and guitar playing are really good. The negatives is that the songs on here are a little on the inconsistent side. By that I mean they start off faster and then slow down. I personally can deal with that for a few songs but if a lot of the songs are like that then I tend to lose interest (kind of like the Size Matters album by Helmet). This is not a bad record and in fact it’s quite good but it’s just not very memorable. I don’t know, listen for yourself. I’ll give this 7/10
Standouts: True Nature, Wrong Girl, Hypersonic
The Great Escape Artist- am I the only one that gets some STP vibes from this record? I don’t know why but I think of Stone Temple Pilots when I hear this record. This one is definitely the softest of the bunch and it’s one of those records that I could listen to in the background while doing stuff. It’s also kind of a relaxing record. I can’t explain it. Hopefully when they put out the next record it’s not like this but this is definitely a very different record. 7/10
Standouts: Underground, I’ll Hit You Back, Broken People
This is definitely a hard rock band that you should check out. I don’t know what people have against Perry Farrell’s voice. To me it’s fine. It’s unique but it’s not bad. It’d be interesting to see these guys live again and hopefully their last album is not a sign of things to come.
Final Grade: B+
Album Rankings:
- Nothing’s Shocking
- Ritual De Lo Habitual
- Jane’s Addiction
- Kettle Whistle
- Strays
- The Great Escape Artist
Sinister Reviews 