Connect with us

Music

[Review] Black Taxi ‘We Don’t Know Any Better’

Published

12 years ago

on

blacktaxiwdkabcover

I’m all for bands that like to mix genres and have fun. As a matter of fact, I really look forward to hearing these artists, as I’m interested in knowing what rules they like to bend and which ones they decide need to broken entirely. Such is the case with Black Taxi, an indie rock band who must’ve left their hearts in the 80’s. Filled with reggae and funk mixed with infectious danceable moments, We Don’t Know Any Better aims to have you tapping your foot, nodding your head, bouncing your leg…hell, they’d be thrilled to have you get up and dance! But do they pull it off as much as they hope?

The album kicks off with Tightrope, a very radio-friendly track with a thick, slightly fuzzy bass riff and clean, high-string guitar chords, very akin to something you would hear from Coldplay or Train. While the song is a perfectly fine track, it doesn’t kick off the album with the amount of energy that feels necessary for this kind of album. However, the next track, We Don’t Know Any Better, picks up that slack with a very indie rock/punk sound that had my foot tapping and my head bobbing along.
The album is full of interesting tones. The bass can be well rounded yet at the forefront or suddenly be hairy with fuzz and rocking out at the foundation. The guitars make use of several different tones and effects, including tremolo, chorus, and reverb. The use of delay is especially fun, utilizing surf rock slapback or a spacious ping-pong. The drums are sharp and have great attack while the vocals switch between clean and distorted. Overall, a very fun mix that will have car stereos thumping or your home sound system begging to be turned up just that little bit more.
My issues with the album are that it doesn’t seem to know whether it wants to be upbeat or more laid back. There are times when I hear influences of The Rapture or Electric Six (We Don’t Know Any Better and We’ll Take Another). But then there are times when I hear bands like The Cure and mellow Depeche Mode take over (Hand and Becoming). Then there is the track Holding On To Nothing, which definitely doesn’t fit. Using acoustic guitars, the track has an entirely different feel than all other tracks, ultimately ending up as an outcast. The final track of the album, Hope I Never Know, seems to sit directly between upbeat and mellow, which left me frustrated, not knowing which way the album wants to sway.
Still, just because the songs might not know where to fall on the spectrum of energy, that doesn’t change the fact that they are very solid tunes. Still, I imagine this band is better enjoyed in a live situation rather than hearing them alone.
The Final Word: Black Taxi’s We Don’t Know Any Better is full of great, thoroughly enjoyable songs. Unfortunately, while the album aims for an excitement level of ten, it only manages to reach an eight. 
Related Topics:

Managing editor/music guy/social media fella of Bloody-Disgusting

Advertisement
Click to comment

Music

“He Walks By Night” – Listen to a Brand New John Carpenter Song NOW!

Published

1 week ago

on

April 9, 2024

By

John Carpenter music

It’s a new day, and you’ve got new John Carpenter to listen to. John Carpenter, Daniel Davies and Cody Carpenter have released the new track He Walks By Night this morning, the second single off their upcoming album Lost Themes IV: Noir, out May 3 on Sacred Bones Records.

Lost Themes IV: Noir is the latest installment in a series that sees Carpenter releasing new music for John Carpenter movies that don’t actually exist. The first Lost Themes was released in 2015, followed by Lost Themes II in 2016 and Lost Themes III: Alive After Death in 2021.

Sacred Bones previews, “It’s been a decade since John Carpenter recorded the material that would become Lost Themes, his debut album of non-film music and the opening salvo in one of Hollywood’s great second acts. Those vibrant, synth-driven songs, made in collaboration with his son Cody Carpenter and godson Daniel Davies, kickstarted a musical renaissance for the pioneering composer and director. With Lost Themes IV: Noir, they’ve struck gold again, this time mining the rich history of the film noir genre for inspiration.

“Since the first Lost Themes, John has referred to these compositions as “soundtracks for the movies in your mind.” On the fourth installment in the series, those movies are noirs. Like the film genre they were influenced by, what makes these songs “noirish” is sometimes slippery and hard to define, and not merely reducible to a collection of tropes. The scores for the great American noir pictures were largely orchestral, while the Carpenters and Davies work off a sturdy synth-and-guitar backbone.

“The trio’s free-flowing chemistry means Lost Themes IV: Noir runs like a well-oiled machine—the 1951 Jaguar XK120 Roadster from Kiss Me Deadly, perhaps, or the 1958 Plymouth Fury from John’s own Christine. It’s a chemistry that’s helped power one of the most productive stretches of John’s creative life, and Noir proves that it’s nowhere near done yielding brilliant results.”

You can pre-save Lost Themes IV: Noir right now! And listen to the new track below…

Continue Reading