
As you may or may not know I am rather proud of being clean off of cocaine for, at this point, almost 2 decades. I had a good run and can’t say there weren’t a lot of amazing times involved but when it came time to kick I kicked and haven’t looked back. That may seem like a strange way to start a review but honestly that’s what this album brings to mind. Not the doing but the kicking. The jonesing in the middle of the night, the feverish sweats, the trashing of closets looking for a stash I may have overlooked and finally collapsing and slipping into feverish and fitful sleep. J. Roddy Walston and the Business have managed to make music that feels like that. The pace is feverish, the vocals have a desperate longing and the lyrics are cut to the core raw. Even the damn album cover played into the feeling this music imparted to me as I worked my way through this one.
I have listened to this one more than a couple of time at this point and honestly don’t know whether or not I actually like it. There’s something there under the feverish desperation that keeps me coming back for more but I can never put my finger on it. The epiphany never manages to show up. Now don’t get me wrong this a damn good album. The production is great, J. Roddy Walston and the Business click in a way that lot of bands never do and the lyrics are good throughout but I still can’t sit through it start to finish. Maybe it’s just the things I described haunting me a little too much whilst J. Roddy is wailing to the highly abused piano and driving backbeat that overwhelms me. In short, J. Roddy Walston and the Business, it’s me not you. I think some of the 9B readers will find this album right up their alley even if I can only do a few songs at a time. But please don’t think for a second I am running this one down. My thoughts are far from saying anything negative about these boys. This album is intense on so many levels and it’s most assuredly worth your time. I realize, while listening to this one and writing about it, just like jonesing for more blow I keep fucking coming back to this one for more…
J. Roddy Walston and the Business – Don’t Break The Needle
J. Roddy Walston and the Business – Used To Did
J. Roddy Walston and the Business – Uh Oh Rock & Roll
J. Roddy Walston and the Business on MySpace
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