August and Everything After Review

Lets imagine a Rom-com, late 90’s Rom-com. To paint this picture completely lets put Meg Ryan as the female lead and maybe Hanks or some such as the male lead. Follows the standard rom com pattern, polar opposites dislike each other at first, through a series of events become close only for the female lead to break it all off due to an innocuous comment early on in the flick or a misunderstanding, finally the male lead will make some heartfelt plea to win the heart of the female, all interspersed with various montages.
Todays CD soundtracks all of that, today I was commuting to the sound of Counting Crows and their debut, August and Everything After. This album not only soundtracks the fictional rom-com’s opening titles, the montages, the break up, the thoughtful reflection following the break up, the punch the air in delight reconciling and the end credits, but also the opening, the getting together montage and all the bastard rom com clichés inbetween.
Counting Crows were made for rom com soundtracks and although the songs are ok, I can’t help picturing montages, segues and credits. This distracts me as I know that Perfect Blue Buildings is alright a song and not the incidental music in a date scene, but that unfortunately is what comes through.
Its not a bad album though it just conjures up clear images due to its use and sound, it sounds like late 90’s rom com soundtrack music. I think its fair to give it 4 out of 10, it has a few ok songs and its better than the follow up, less Meg Ryan on that though.



Perfect Blue Buildings by Counting Crows

Recovering The Satellites

Time is a bit of a luxury at the moment and you will notice as the reviews get ever more swifter. Todays commute CD was the Counting Crows album, Recovering The Satellites.
I was given this and another Counting Crows album by someone that didn’t like the band very much, the other album I quite like, this one, not so much. It’s a bit dull you see, its long, samey, American easy listening rock. It has I am sure soundtracked a romantic scene in Friends or some Meg Ryan romantic comedy. Today it soundtracked me going past junction 6 on the M6. No Meg Ryan, and no comedy.
Like Kev work is ramping up a bit and so the commute CD element of this blog is going to take a break for a few weeks, I have podcasts to listen to. Counting Crows in a nutshell then, 3 out of 10. Must try harder.



A Long December by Counting Crows