Link: Sid ‘n’ Susie
The Inside Pulse:
On the cover is a music geek’s dream: an underground pop hero teams up with an underrated and misunderstood pop princess to cover 15 respected gems and cult classics from a golden era of pop. But this is why they play the games, as the sports cliché goes, because while the elements are perfect, the sum is deeply flawed. Everything about this disk seems natural except for the finished product.
Their hearts are most definitely in the right place. For the full effect, play this in mono on tinny speakers and pretend you’re on the beach in an orange paisley bathing suit working on your surfer-bronze tan. A few tracks won’t spoil the image, but too many (and surprisingly, many of the early tracks — no front loading?) are missing something important.
Maybe they are both fighting through their own mortality as pop icons and figured a movement to preserve pop classics might lead others to someday discover what was great in their past. That would at least give this a deeper meaning. Maybe their reverence for the songs resulted in a timid studio atmosphere. Unfortunately, I think this is just a chalkboard gem turned playing field flop.
The inconsistent attempts to use the aliases Sid and Susie seem indicative of the misfire. They can’t consistently become the pop heroes they pay tribute to and often settle for being themselves playing their favorite songs at home. But, as with karaoke nights at the local, there are heartfelt moments and genuine charmers buried in the mud, and in that sense this is a music geek’s dream. They can buy this and when the album fails to chart, they will be holders of the keys to some truely great and obscure party tracks.
Positives:
– Most of the second half of the disk, which is far stronger than the first half.
– Hoffs has the perfect voice for some of this sugar-sweet material, and she can still give you a chill with the right line.
– The songs are mostly great tunes (not a fan of all of them, but you may be) and they generally stay out of the way of your enjoyment of some classic toe tappers.
Negatives:
– Songs where they missed pretty badly, including “Your Bird Can Sing,” “It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue,” “Cinnamon Girl” and “Alone Again Or” are the ones that people will be tearing shrink wrap to hear and the ensuing disappointment will turn some off completely.
– If there was a way to presuppose volume 2 and keep this shorter, they definitely could have turned a “4” into a “6” and built excitement for a long series of successes.
– The home studio feel is pervasive as this sounds like a decent quality bootleg of home recordings.
Cross-breed:
Is it unfair to say Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs with “Nuggets?”
Reason to buy:
You love these songs or the artists and are willing to overlook some snoozers for some sleepers.
