Interessante (?) Neuerscheinungen - Allgemeines

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Spiegelonline schreibt:

"Neil Young - "Fork In The Road"
(Reprise/Warner, 3. April)

Dem beigelegten Infotext, der affirmativ und vollkommen arglos von "ehrlich-amtlichem Rock in der typischen Neil-Young-Souveränität" spricht, ist in diesem Fall leider kaum etwas hinzuzufügen: Derselbe Neil, der "Cowgirl In The Sand", "Winterlong", "Southern Man" und "Sugar Mountain" schrieb, spielt auf "Fork In The Road" jenen ehrlich-amtlichen Rock, der an schlimmste Young-Momente erinnert: "Motorcycle Mama", "Violent Side", "Let's Roll". Es wird an dieser Stelle also nicht von Neils 100 Prozent emissionsfreier Umweltlimousine zu lesen sein - und auch nicht vom alten Knochen, der den Parvenüs nochmal so richtig zeigt, wo die Gabel hängt. Nein, Neil, du hast das fabelhafte Grundrauschen und Grundrumpeln von "Ragged Glory" und "Living With War" (jawohl!) gegen Jürgen-Trittin-Rock eingetauscht und röchelst nun wie von Sinnen "Cough up the bucks/ Cough up the bucks", während Schlagzeug und Bass durch die Gegend dengeln wie Kalk in der Waschmaschine.

FORUM

Neuester: Heute 18:46 Uhr
von Aljoscha der Idiot
Auch "Johnny Magic" und "Fuel Line" (mit Fade-out!) sind so uninspiriert und grausam, wie man es nach dem wunderbaren "Ordinary People" von "Chrome Dreams II" nicht mehr für möglich gehalten hätte. Die einzigen drei Gründe, "Fork In The Road" dennoch Einlass in die Sammlung zu gewähren, sind "Off The Road", "Light A Candle" und "Singing A Song", das auf der Tour im Spätherbst so selbstverständlich mit den rohen Crazy-Horse-Brechern verschmolz. Wir warten auf den 2. Juni. Wir warten auf "Archives Vol.1 1963-1972". (3) Jan Wigger

"Es gibt drei Wahrheiten:
Meine Wahrheit,
deine Wahrheit
und die Wahrheit.

chin. Sprichwort "

The Intependent:

"Album: Neil Young, Fork in the Road (Reprise)

(Rated 2/ 5 )

For the past few years, Neil Young's hobby has been what's known as the Lincvolt project, converting his treasured 1959 Lincoln Continental to run on eco-fuels, the vehicle then being driven across the USA. Now, as is often the way with this most prolific and spontaneous of rockers, he's made a record about the experience – a single-issue album which, Neil being Neil, gets sidetracked occasionally into rants about whatever drifts across his radar. Both the title track and "Cough Up the Bucks" find him firing off weak salvoes at bankers and politicians, which reveal him to be no Robert Peston. Unfortunately, he's no scientific genius either, which renders the string of eco-car songs little more than bland automotive boogies, the sound of Fork in the Road being largely unvarnished blues-rock of undistinguished quality, ragged but nowhere near as glorious as he can deliver. "Johnny Magic" is a tribute to Jonathan Goodwin, his boffin partner in the Lincvolt business, while the funk-rock strutter "Fuel Line" is a lazy would-be eco-anthem too drab and clumsy to be adopted as a clarion call. "Just Singing a Song" touches on the nub of the problem with this album, Neil clearly believing his hands-on action is the way forward, and that "just singing a song won't change the world". Well, not this song. But isn't that what he does? "

"Uncut"

"Neil Young: "Fork In The Road", The Album
2009-03-10 11:09:35

With the news this morning that Neil Young has been confirmed to headline both Glastonbury and Hyde Park Hard Rock Calling in June, I’ve finally got my head around his new album, “Fork In The Road”, as promised.

Continued...

It sometimes strikes me that while many of his fans might perceive Neil’s greatest moment as, I don’t know, “Like A Hurricane” or “Cortez The Killer” or something, the singer himself maybe privileges “Piece Of Crap” above all his other songs these days. He may also have a higher regard for “Re-Ac-Tor” in its entirety than is strictly canonical.

This is the tradition into which “Fork In The Road” generally fits, just as “Living With War” and, to a degree, “Greendale” did: home-cooked, unvarnished, phenomenally unsteady, more or less spontaneous. It strikes me that latterday Neil fans will be somewhat divided on this one. Those that favour the more finished likes of “Prairie Wind” (or God forbid, “Are You Passionate?”) will probably find it annoyingly lo-fi and cranky.

Those of us, however, who prefer Neil in this rough-hewn mood, with ideas in the ascendant over schmaltz, may be happier. I’d prefer the epic, billowing side that came to the fore on a good half of “Chrome Dreams II”, but he doesn’t seem to go down that path on record so often these days.

In the absence of a new “No Hidden Path” – and, indeed, the absence of those damned “Archives” – “Fork In The Road” will do fine. It is, as suspected, a crude and bashed-out garage rock album that loosely connects motoring with the American economy. But beneath the rough edges, a good few of these ten swift songs are keepers.

The title track you’ll already know (I blogged about it here), not least from that superb Youtube video. “Get Behind The Wheel” is much in the same vein, another choogle that’s a good deal faster than Young’s contemplative slouch.

Much of the album, in fact, rattles along at a quicker rate than his default speed. It’s far from a smooth ride, though: “Cough Up The Bucks” features a crotchety anchoring riff that seems to mirror the spluttering if still powerful engine of one of Young’s hulking old cars. Only the lovely “Just Singing A Song” features Young’s keynote lyrical playing, that stunned expansiveness, and wouldn’t have sounded out of place on “Ragged Glory”.

There are many odd things here, of course, including the first single, “Johnny Magic”, with clipped, cutesy backing vox that – aligned with the song title – remind me terrifyingly of Jonathan King’s “Johnny Reggae” (big caveat: I haven’t heard that record in years and years, so could be completely wrong there). Two tracks slow down the chug: “Off The Road” is a ballad so exhausted and damaged, it almost seems to collapse, rather pleasingly; “Light A Candle” is more delicate and finessed and, with Ben Keith in evidence, might temporarily placate “Prairie Wind” fans.

But then “Fork In The Road” trundles off again, and provides us all with an, albeit snarky, mission statement: “Keep on blogging ‘til the power goes out. . .”

____________________

"Es gibt drei Wahrheiten:
Meine Wahrheit, deine Wahrheit und die Wahrheit."
chin. Sprichwort

"Humor ist oft der einzige Weg zwischen Resignation und Aggression!"

2009: Manu Katche, Rich Hopkins, Dream Theater, Springsteen, Calexico, Oasis, Steve Hackett, Jan Garbarek...