About Stefan Halley
Location: Malmo, Sweden
Occupation: Editor-in-Chief
Bio: Stefan has been writing reviews for seven years and started Pop Syndicate out of need to voice his mis-guided opinion.
Posts: 719
More from this author
The Counting Crows are back with their first studio album in five years but it worth the wait?
I have a love/hate relationship with the Counting Crows. On the one hand, I know they are a talented band that does decent music, on the other, they ruined one of the best concerts I’ve ever been too and thus made me vow to never listen to their music again. Time heals all wounds and I find myself not only listening to a new Counting Crows album but actually liking it. Saturday Nights and Sunday Mornings finds Adam Duritz and group rocking out for their first studio album in six years. Fans will happily breathe a sigh of relief to find out that it’s worth the wait.
Saturday Nights and Sunday Mornings is set up like an old record. Back when you had the A-side and B-side of an album, bands would often times pick a theme for each side be it heaven/hell, joy/pain, Saturday Nights/Sunday Mornings. The first half (Saturday Nights) is a rocking night out on the town with raucous guitars and aggressive lyrics. The back half (Sunday Mornings) is a laid back recovery from the festivities of the previous evening. It’s a fun theme that brings a little extra to the release.
The Crows come out fighting leading off the album with “1942” with a tale of hanging out in trashy Italian nightclubs. If all you know about the Counting Crows is “Mr. Jones” and “Round Here”, then you’ll be surprised that they can rock out. “Hanging Tree” sounds like it should be on an R.E.M. CD and not a Counting Crows release. Jangling guitars and a looser sound, it’s more of a jam piece and you can just see the band rocking out on stage. Likewise, “Los Angeles” has the best of the Rolling Stones with a solid rock blues sound and Duritz bringing his best soulful abilities to the song.
Starting with “Washington Square”, things swing into the acoustic. Duritz gets to be his most earnest, as the electric guitars are put away and replaced with banjos and mandolins. The Counting Crows bring blues, bluegrass and a little country to play. “On Almost Any Sunday Morning” is the best example of Duritz’s mournful voice backed up by harmonica and guitar. The second half isn’t as strong as the first half simply because there isn’t as much variety in the songs. All are slow melodic songs that are well done but don’t differentiate themselves to any large degree. Things pick up at the end with “Come Around”. It’s the mid-afternoon, coming out of the hangover song that leads you right back to the start of the CD.
After 13 years, Counting Crows still has it. Saturday Nights and Sunday Mornings is a solid effort from the band that has lasted. It’s a straight rock album that fans will love and should pick up more than few new fans. The radio friendly CD won’t disappoint.
