Tapes ‘n’ Tapes – Walk it Off
The Loon was a bit of a minor masterpiece, albeit one which started to wobble a little and run out of steam in the latter third of the album.
Walk it Off is a disappointment really – more of the same, but without much of the urgency and drive that made The Loon so good. That is about all I can really add, to be honest. Y’know, it’s like Tapes ‘n’ Tapes but for the most part less good.
On something of a tangent, Tapes ‘n’ Tapes, like Beirut, were groups from 2006 that I absolutely loved, despite the fact that no-one around me had even heard of them. I started writing Song, by Toad around this time and suddenly it dawned on me that all this completely obscure music that I was listened to was a telltale signature of a very specific target market, many of whom are to be found in the blogosphere. Now, I am not ashamed or surprised to exhibit herd-like behaviour myself – lets face it, we all do it and as long as you’re being sincere then it’s nothing to be afraid of – but what I did wonder about was where I’d absorbed these influences from.
See, I never really read blogs until shortly before I was writing one, so it can’t have come from peer group influence of any sort, so how did I end up liking the exact same music as an army of bloggers, whilst living completely isolated from their influence? Presumably, and without wishing to state the obvious, social factors play a massive part in musical tastes. And perhaps those of us who grew up with Dylan and the Band on one side and Bowie and Depeche Mode on the other, are very likely to end up with a very specific set of tastes of our own.
But I was surprised at just how exactly my tastes seemed to mirror those of the blogosphere average, especially having developed in what I had assumed to be quite different conditions. Presumably not so different after all. Anyhow, erm, oh yes, don’t buy this album because it isn’t very good.
Tapes ‘n’ Tapes – Hang Them All
Tapes ‘n’ Tapes – Time of Songs
Ha! That post took an unexpected detour.
Oh, and don’t worry. I won’t be buying this.
I liked The Loon and got to it via the blogosphere. Thanks for the heads-up on the follow up as on the basis of what I’ve heard so far and your review I’m in agreement and will avoid.
Crikey, now I feel really mean! Erm, maybe try their myspace for some more tracks before giving up entirely.
I was bloody disappointed with this. I thoght The Loon was genuinely one of the more experimental & interestnig albums released that year. Second album syndrome, indeed.
With you absolutely. received it to review for Is This Music? and gave it 2 1/2 out of 5. Want to love it, but just can’t. Alas…second album syndrome as has so rightly been observed earlier.
Ed
I keep reading the same things about this record and with all the music out there I understand how easy it is to pass something over… But I think Walk It Off is a great record. It took me a few listens to be sure. I was initially turned off by the overall sound of the production (too low, not enough quirks, distinctly more “radio ready” than the loon). But the songs are there and repeated listens are definitely rewarded. If you buy the vinyl, I think you will be hard pressed to find a better side B anywhere this year. Take it or leave it, I’m sure tapes will have no trouble walking off this typical buzz band backlash.
Well it’s one of the biggest risks of music reviewing, I guess. It’s rare to give an album the time you might as a casual listener. It was occasionally six months or even a year later that I really got into a record back before I felt the compulsion to write about it, and I sometimes worry that I don’t give things anything like that much time anymore. I have given this one plenty of listens, but I do know what you mean.