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| Bruce Springsteen - The Rising Classification: Pop Band: Bruce Springsteen Tracks: - Lonesome Day - Into The Fire - Waitin' On A Sunny Day - Nothing Man - Countin' On A Miracle - Empty Sky - Worlds Apart - Let's Be Friends (Skin to Skin) - Further On (Up The Road) - The Fuse - Mary's Place - You're Missing - The Rising - Paradise - My City Of Ruins Wonderful Music Right now, I am only 21 years old and have been a fan of Springsteen for only 3 of them. I often wonder why people my age are often repulsed by Bruce but cling to his tired contemporaries like Aerosmith. I believe the answer lies with Bruce's last full E Street Album, Born in the USA, and the lack of connection my generation has with those themes.<BR>Now, however, the boss is back with themes everyone can relate to. With the 9/11 context, its very powerful. However, without it, its more. The title track is a testimonial to anyone who works hard at their job (the cross of my calling) and has sacrificed because of it. "Mary's Place" is a seemingly happy song but melancholy undertones, which I think is absolutely brilliant. "Into the Fire," admittedly written for the fireman, speaks so loudly that the chorus ("May your strength give us strength/May you faith give us faith/may your hope give us hope/May your Love bring us love") was evenused during the recent Major League Baseball playoffs during postgame celebrations on TV! <BR>However, my personal favorite from the album is "Lonesome Day." This song can be read in many different ways, and the ambiguity of this song and many others on the album are what makes it fantastic. "Lonesome Day" can be about any tragedy that Leaves you alone, whether it be death, rejection, betrayal, or disappearance. Great song, and I look forward to the music video.<BR>If you've never given Bruce a chance, listen to this album. "The Rising," "Lonesome Day," and "You're Missing" are good places to start. I'll see you furthur on up the road. The New Springsteen Classic This isn't Springsteen's best album musically or lyrically - it lacks the depth and storytelling complexity of Nebraska or Tom Joad, the epic scope of Born to Run, and the raw emotion of Darkness on the Edge of Town. It isn't his worst either: that is reserved for his bland pop trilogy of Tunnel of Love, Human Touch, and Lucky Town. Running 75 minutes, with Fifteen songs with the theme of September 11, I feel that it would have been stronger if he left out a couple of weak tunes. But those things are details. The virtues of this album don't lie merely in the music, but in the themes and its context. This will probably be the album Springsteen may be most remembered for - and perhaps rightfully so. It IS close to being his most enjoyable album - the sound is halfway between the r&b influences of The Wild, the Innocent and the E Street Shuffle and the somewhat repetitive (but catchy) anthems of Born in the USA. Springsteen is breaking no new musical ground, and for the most part the style and production could have been churned out back in 1978 (there is a short incorporation of world music influence, but certainly no nod to electronica or rap or grunge). What he and The Band attempt, however, they accomplish masterfully. I was fearful that the album was merely cynical marketing exploitation of a tragedy. Unfortunately, with the hype surrounding it, and the unthinking way I'm sure many will Embrace it, Bruce and be an overappreciated and oversimplified icon once again for a time. But that isn't Fair - the songs are not jingoistic, simplistic, or overly sentimental. They are unrelenting in their message that people of all countries must Band together to overcome hatred and tragedy. Some songs, such as "Paradise" and "My City of Ruins" are sublime. Some, like "Mary's Place" and "Countin on a Miracle" are catchy, rolicking classic Sprinsteen. Some, like "The Rising" are uplifting anthems. The solid songs far outweigh the few missteps. I don't think that any other Artist could pull off a full album of songs about 9-11. The events of that day touched most of us profoundly, and there are many moments on this album that take me straight back to those early moments, when I saw the first pictures of the towers on television. For that reason these songs will be woven into the fabric of my memory and they will be woven into the collective memory of our culture, along with the images and stories we shared. In that, this album is a grand ambition realized for Springsteen once again, and another shining moment in a great career. Buy it. Sorry but not a classic Perhaps our expectations of Bruce are too high. In addition to holding him responsible for his own personal genre, we look to him for salvation from a sea of vapid "rock" music produced by coddled kids pretending to be stressed. Bruce succeeds in providing our ears with a sincere album played by professional musicians. Unfortunately, when measured by Bruce standards this album is not very good - despite the glowing reviews posted here by people unwilling to admit it. Springsteen set out (however unintentionally) to do something incredibly ambitious. Ask yourself, "would I take an album of over a dozen rock songs about September 11th seriously if it were anyone but the Boss?" Obviously moved and suddenly prolific, Bruce offers us an album of music that needs less and more. From a songwriting perspective, Bruce is erratic albeit sincere. At least 4 of the songs should have been thrown away in the studio ("Empty Sky, "Waiting on a Sunny Day", "Further On Up the Road", "Nothing Man"). Several others are filler. There are a couple of tracks ("Mary's Place, "Into the Fire") that could be good with more attention to detail. Performance and production are mediocre. Even if you can get past Bruce's wierd counry affectation, his vocal performance is mostly languid and dull. If you don't believe me try listening to "Adam Raised a Cain" to remind yourself of just how the guy can deliver. The arrangements sound like Mellencamp's Band with a Cameo or two by the Big Man. The production is irritatingly bright and slick and obscures all of the sonic texture that makes the E Street Band so cool. The organs, high register pianos, sax and bass are all buried underneath a jangle of guitars that sounds like the Travelling Wilbury's. There is not much hooky or memorable. The exception to all of the above is the quite excellent studio rendering of "My City Of Ruins". Buried on the end of 14 so so tracks, this is a welcome injection of Bruce Juice. There is more soul in the first 4 bars of this track than all others combined. The arrangement is better. Production better. In short, more thoughtful in every way. There's the problem. Bruce only needed one song to make his point. He gave us 14. And there was no one there to stop him. Tell yourself it's great. Enjoy it for a little while if only because it is not Creed or Staind or [insert name here]. But soon it will go into the pile and it will never make it into the Player before "Born to Run" or "Darkness on the Edge of Town". A classic this is not. Buy Bruce Springsteen The Rising at Amazon.com Buy posters at Allposters.comJamster - the latest ringtones for your phone! |
