Here are some of my favorite StrangeJuice songs (an incomplete list):
- Leafblower from the Leafblower EP
- We Are Bees and Let Me Paint Your Picture from the Jalapeno Sun EP
- Metamorphosis from High Anxiety
- Calling Luci from Sparrow
- Eyes Of The Morning from The Sound of Prozac
- Something Worthwhile from Domestic Bliss
These songs are eclectic, progressive, experimental and odd...but they convey a story, or a feeling there is a story, and emotion. They speak to my heart in dream inducing ways. They are why I love StrangeJuice and am always anxious for his next release.
I haven't added to my favorite songs since Leafblower. Arctic Tundra and Patterns of Juvenile Delinquency just didn't "do it" for me. So I was really counting on Raising Cannibals to "get back" to adding to my list.
Track 1 "Introduction" was just rude.
Track 2 "Big Jim Smoke" sounds like something Tom Waits might have done - or a track that could have been off StrangeJuice's "Brown Songs" Weird seemingly just to be weird.
Track 3 "Hey You" is fun, kinda silly, funky and ultimately a good time.
Track 4 "Diet Pills" has a story and is one the most straightforward songs on the album.
Track 5 "Put The Television On" is a bit chaotic with competing vocal lines and guitars all layered in stereo effects that left me feeling discombobulated.
Track 6 "Lazy Sun" mellows things out with a rhythm and beat that got my toes tapping and my head bobbing. A tinge of psychedelia and interesting instrument riffs brings this one into a happy place. My favorite song on the album.
Track 7 "Home Shopping" - I like it. Made me think of Toni Basil a little bit but it is much more of a rocker than anything she did. But I could see her dance choreography being used in a video for this song.
Track 8 "Walk Into The Light" is a bit ballad-like in the old fashioned bard-style - think Steeleye Span or Fairport Convention
Track 9 "After Party" - overall a good song that made no sense to me - LOL - very Prog Rock
Track 10 "Bonnies Dress" is a dreamscape / nightmarish song that continues the Prog Rock style
Track 11 "Surf's Up" is another weird one - maybe a tad B-52ish in feeling. Ultimately it was just too weird for me.
Track 12 "The Forgetting Place" didn't really hit me - it is a pleasant album track.
Track 13 "Creatures Of The Night" is another odd just to be odd song. Too much blatant "trying" to be strange - it didn't feel genuine.
Track 14 "Horses Eyes" is a lovely ballad that I feel would have been so much nicer with less "treatment" - I would have loved just a pure vocal with no layering - will I ever get that?
So overall a mixed bag but definitely his best album, IMO, since Leafblower. I found a lot to like, a little to love and nothing really to hate. I can't say I appreciate a lot of the weirdness on this one - it just didn't feel authentic. StrangeJuice has done a lot of different, unusual and even bizarre things before but they always felt authentic. These "weird" tracks felt more like he was trying too hard - pushing too much.
Thankfully whatever the production elements from Arctic Tundra that brought pain to my ears are gone. These songs all have a great sound though I might have produced them differently, more organically. I enjoyed this album and definitely suggest people check it out.
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