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We Say...
After 2006's relatively rough and relaxed It's Never Been Like That, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix emphasizes the French quartet's ordinarily opposing extremes. Although outside drummers are hired and various hands overdub keyboards, the kinetic grooves on opening singles “Liztomania” and “1901” get so extraordinarily tight that there's the illusion ...After 2006's relatively rough and relaxed It's Never Been Like That, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix emphasizes the French quartet's ordinarily opposing extremes. Although outside drummers are hired and various hands overdub keyboards, the kinetic grooves on opening singles “Liztomania” and “1901” get so extraordinarily tight that there's the illusion of four guys rocking out in a room, and the pace rarely falters throughout. At the same time, this is also Phoenix's most ridiculously tweaked disc: Producer Philippe Zdar — half of the French dance duo Cassius — applies the sound filtering effects associated with French house acts like his to the band's alternately Cars-cool and XTC-frantic performances into a rock ‘n' club hologram that's infinitely bigger and brighter than the anonymous Jacques who cower behind the curtain. The entire album feels like one mercifully extended remix. -
They Say...
Realigned with Philippe Zdar, the half of Cassius who mixed United, Phoenix make adjustments on the polarizing characteristics of their second and third albums -- the pokey and occasionally listless Alphabetical, the jagged and tune-deficient It's Never Been Like That -- with some of the most direct and enjoyable songs they've made to date. The ...Realigned with Philippe Zdar, the half of Cassius who mixed United, Phoenix make adjustments on the polarizing characteristics of their second and third albums -- the pokey and occasionally listless Alphabetical, the jagged and tune-deficient It's Never Been Like That -- with some of the most direct and enjoyable songs they've made to date. The two opening songs, the bopping "Lisztomania" and the buzzing "1901," are so immediate and prone to habitual play that the remainder of the album is bound to be neglected. There is plenty to like beyond that point, including "Lasso," which niftily alternates between a tangled rhythm and tight-spiral riffing, and the labyrinthine "Pt. 1" of "Love Like a Sunset," which serves the same purpose as the extended instrumental passages on Roxy Music's Avalon, at least until its rousing conclusion and shift into "Pt. 2." Beyond containing the band's best, most efficient songwriting, the album also stands apart from the first three studio albums by projecting a cool punch that is unforced. Vocalist Thomas Mars, more bright-eyed and youthful than ever, also sounds more a part of these songs, rather than coming across as a protruding element that clashes against the instruments. Maybe they've just hit their stride. -
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| 01. |
Lisztomania |
4:02 |
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| 02. |
1901 |
3:13 |
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| 03. |
Fences |
3:45 |
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| 04. |
Love Like a Sunset Part I |
5:39 |
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| 05. |
Love Like a Sunset Part II |
1:57 |
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| 06. |
Lasso |
2:48 |
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| 07. |
Rome |
4:38 |
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| 08. |
Countdown
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3:57 |
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| 09. |
Girlfriend |
3:24 |
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| 10. |
Armistice |
3:05 |
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10 Total Tracks, 36:28 Total Length
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Credits
- Mike Marsh - Mastering // Mike Marsh - Remastering // Philippe Zdar - Mixing // Philippe Zdar - Audio Production // Philippe Zdar - Audio Engineer // Phoenix - Audio Production // Thomas Mars - Vocals // Thomas Mars - Group Member // Deck d'Arcy - Bass // Deck d'Arcy - Guitar (Bass) // Deck d'Arcy - Group Member // Christian Mazzalai - Guitar // Christian Mazzalai - Group Member // Julien Delfaud - Engineer // Julien Delfaud - Audio Engineer // Shoichi Kajino - Photography // Laurent Brancowitz - Guitar // Laurent Brancowitz - Artwork // Laurent Brancowitz - Group Member // Cedric Plancy - Flute // Cedric Plancy - Engineer // Cedric Plancy - Stage Manager // Thomas Hedlund - Drums // Thomas Hedlund - Sampling // Thomas Hedlund - Drum Samples // Marc Alary - Typography // Florent Livet - Assistant Engineer // Arnaud Chag Baratin - Production Coordination // Fabien Courtois - Technical Engineer // Julien Naudin - Assistant Engineer // Pascal Teixeira - Art Direction // Julien Naudin - Audio Engineer // Florent Livet - Audio Engineer // Fabien Courtois - Audio Engineer // Cedric Plancy - Audio Engineer
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