It's been a while since we had a new album from the Cars. Can you believe it was 1987?
When bassist and co-lead singer Benjamin Orr died in 2000, most fans had probably given up on the idea of a Cars reunion. In 2005, Elliot Easton and Greg Hawkes teamed up with Todd Rundgren and some other musical veterans to form The New Cars, which performed some Cars' and Rundgren hits on tour, but could it really be the Cars without Rick Ocasek?
Well Ocasek is back in the fold and their new record "Move Like This" sounds a LOT like the old Cars we knew and loved. It sounds so much like an old Cars record, that I bet if you played me some of the songs on it and said "those were from Side 2 of Candy-o" I probably would have believed you. (I remember I only really listened to one side of that album back in the early days.)
The first single, "Sad Song" starts with a riff and drum lick that's immediately identifiable as that Cars' sound. Despite the title, it's a fun upbeat song that would sound great cranked on the car stereo with the windows open in the summertime.
I also liked "Soon," which has a slow, dreamy quality that reminds me of the song "Drive," sung by Benjamin Orr on the 1984 "Heartbeat City" album.
While "Move Like This" will probably impress the die-hard Cars' fan that's been waiting since the late '80's for something new, I don't think it really stands up that well when compared to their self-titled debut or Candy-O. Ocasek goes a little too crazy on the keyboards, with a synthesized sound I don't really enjoy. For example, one song "Keep on Knocking" has a driving guitar sound that almost seems like a Neil Young thing going on, but then there's some keyboard overlay that just mucks it up.
-Reviewed by Kitty Dunn
If you believe the hashtag, #johnmayerisback!
His first tour since his vocal cord troubles cleared up kicks off on the 4th of July, and includes a stop at Milwaukee's Summerfest on July 6th.
In addition to preparing for a tour, he's been...
Are kids today over-photographed?
Now that everybody has a camera on their phone, and now that Facebook is a greedy beast that must be fed, it seems parents take WAY more pictures of their kids than was the case back in the 1960s and 1970s. It...
People have been wondering why Billie Joe jumped off the bridge since this song came out and made it to number 1 in 1967. Singer Bobby Gentry says people always asked what was thrown over the bridge and why did Billie Joe jump. She never would give a...
Happy birthday to the Cute Beatle, SIr Paul McCartney! He turns 71 today.
One of the rules for Beatles fans is that you must memorize tidbits of Beatle trivia to try and impress other Beatle fans. This is not that easy to do....as things like...
In 1968, Jeannie C. Riley topped both the pop and country charts with "Harper Valley PTA". She was the first female singer to accomplish that feat and it wasn't repeated until Dolly Parton did it in 1981 with the song "9 to 5". The song was...
This week we're doing story songs on the World's Worst iPod. We start with the story of Billy who really wanted to be a hero. He was a hero, but didn't live to see it and his girlfriend was pretty angry. The song was originally done by...
This week' s Gabby's Pick is another track from emerging artist ZZ Ward's debut album , called "365 Days."
In addition to all the radio airplay " Put The Gun Down" has received, you may also have heard her music on several television...
Apparently Oreo flavored Oreos are not sufficient.
Nabisco is continuing its trend of introducing special limited edition flavors for its Oreo cookies. Last year, the internet was all abuzz about candy corn Oreos, which supposedly didn't really...
If you believe the hashtag, #johnmayerisback!
His first tour since his vocal cord troubles cleared up kicks off on the 4th of July, and includes a stop at Milwaukee's Summerfest on July 6th.
In addition to preparing for a tour, he's been...
Are kids today over-photographed?
Now that everybody has a camera on their phone, and now that Facebook is a greedy beast that must be fed, it seems parents take WAY more pictures of their kids than was the case back in the 1960s and 1970s. It...
People have been wondering why Billie Joe jumped off the bridge since this song came out and made it to number 1 in 1967. Singer Bobby Gentry says people always asked what was thrown over the bridge and why did Billie Joe jump. She never would give a...
Happy birthday to the Cute Beatle, SIr Paul McCartney! He turns 71 today.
One of the rules for Beatles fans is that you must memorize tidbits of Beatle trivia to try and impress other Beatle fans. This is not that easy to do....as things like...
In 1968, Jeannie C. Riley topped both the pop and country charts with "Harper Valley PTA". She was the first female singer to accomplish that feat and it wasn't repeated until Dolly Parton did it in 1981 with the song "9 to 5". The song was...
This week we're doing story songs on the World's Worst iPod. We start with the story of Billy who really wanted to be a hero. He was a hero, but didn't live to see it and his girlfriend was pretty angry. The song was originally done by...
This week' s Gabby's Pick is another track from emerging artist ZZ Ward's debut album , called "365 Days."
In addition to all the radio airplay " Put The Gun Down" has received, you may also have heard her music on several television...
Apparently Oreo flavored Oreos are not sufficient.
Nabisco is continuing its trend of introducing special limited edition flavors for its Oreo cookies. Last year, the internet was all abuzz about candy corn Oreos, which supposedly didn't really...
