Andre Ethier - Part 2

O. convinced me on Wednesday that I should buy the new Andre Ethier CD. What's the worst that could happen? he asked. Let's see... I could be supremely disappointed. That would take the shine off his first CD, which has brought me so much foot tappin' joy. I often avoid buying anything else out of fear of disappointment, be it books or music, if I'm really into one thing a person has done. So what about Secondathallum? Does it live up to the first? Sadly, not quite.

Good stuff first. The production on this album is great. The overall sound is quite different. Same rollickin', let's-hop-a-boxcar feel as the first, but big. Horns, organ, piano... Bold, lush and baudy. Ethier clearly styles himself after other singers who can't sing. I'm not sure if it's because I also can't sing, but I'm drawn to voices like his. Except for Cohen. Never been a big fan of his monotone style. In any case, really dig Ethier's delivery. Love the swagger, love the growls, love the bittersweet high notes.

So far, you are thinking, it sounds pretty great. What's the problem? For me, the big problem on this album is the songwriting. I don't really know anything about Ethier, but I'm speculating that he's had some relationship issues between the first and this one. It is all about love, which is fine, but I found myself getting a little bored. Not that love is boring, but he seems to have limited things to say about it. Also found his overuse of the phrase "little girl" quite irritating. Same with the honey/honey bee thing. Unlike the first CD, there are some really weak songs on this one. Despite the Stooges reference, Now I Want to Be Your Dad is one of them. And though I love Nick Cave, In With the Prim just doesn't do it for me. The last song sends the album out with a whimper. And any song that starts with the aforementioned "little girl" has been getting the skip.

Don't rush out and buy it. If I ever get an MP3 player, I'll be downloading about four songs, then it's bye-bye.