The new Toadies disc comes out tomorrow--the first in seven years for the Fort Worth product. And, 'round these parts (and others, too, it seems), that's big news. Biggest on a national level, at least, for a local artist since, oh, about mid-May, I think. Right, Rhett, Murry, Ken and Philip?
So, yeah, accordingly, I had a piece on the band in the paper cut of DC9 this week. The FWeekly did, too--trumped us, even, by giving their hometown heroes the cover. And last night on The Edge, I heard "No Deliverance" on the air. Shocking, I know. The Edge? Playing Toadies?
No. Effin'. Way.
Anyway, here's where I stand on the record:
It's pretty good. I like it. It's not Rubberneck, though. Probably not even Hell Below/Stars Above. Still, given that we're talking about a band that's released a whopping three albums in 14 years, I think it's a success. Kinda like last year when you heard Dinosaur Jr. was releasing a new disc and you had your doubts.
No Deliverance manages to not disappoint--which, really, is what you fear when you hear about a reunion album/tour like the Toadies are doing. And given how forgettable Vaden Todd Lewis' second Burden Brothers record was, things could've been bad with this disc. It could've just been him reaching back into the pot of gold for a quick buck.
I don't think that's the case here. And, as I said in the article I wrote, Toadies fans will dig these tracks, for sure; casual listeners won't hate it, either. Is it a home run? I don't think so. But a there's a game going on and the Toadies are still in it. And that's encouraging. Nostalgic, too. But mostly encouraging.
So, on that note, we give you this...
Bonus mp3:
Toadies -- "No Deliverance"
Toadies -- "No Deliverance"
We linked you to Spin.com's stream of this track back in June. Now, courtesy of Kirtland Records, the band's Dallas-based label, you can go ahead and download that sucker.
Oh, and for the record, I like it better thinking that Lewis sings "black mustard" and not "black monsters" on the song. --Pete Freedman
