Feeder - "Generation Freakshow"

G-MAN2004

G-MAN2004

G-MAN2004

Caporegime
Joined
4 Jul 2004
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30,781
So, this came out today... :cool:

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...and I am loving it! Anyone else have it or planning to get it?

It's a mix between Comfort in Sound and Echo Park, with a few Silent Cry/Renegades-esque songs thrown in. There are even a few short guitar solos in there which is something new.

I know some people disliked their last album (Renegades) as it was quite a change from previous work, but don't let that put you off - this beats it in every single way.

Stand out tracks for me are: Hey Johnny, Children of the Sun, Quiet, Tiny Minds, Idaho and Headstrong, but they're all really, really good.

BBC said:
Now in their astonishing 21st year as a unit, it seems Welsh/Japanese rock bastions Feeder have no intentions of reeling in their timeline anytime soon, lifting the cloche on their eighth studio album, Generation Freakshow. And although the title may conjure up images of strident, youthful upheaval, it’s something quite different in reality: it’s the sound of a band that has lived every moment of their two decades.

Feeder’s success owes much to Grant Nicholas, whose aptitude for penning an engaging refrain shows no sign of diminishing on this collection. And he hasn’t lost his captivating ability to flit from stadium-enthusing rock vocalist to soothing, candid balladeer, his voice having also cultivated a subtle, weathered tone that in relation to the album’s more diffused quality is straight down the line.

There are no big statement pieces, à la High or Just a Day, but that’s not to say Generation Freakshow is devoid of anthems. Headstrong and In All Honesty, both of which give sometime member Karl Brazil an opportunity to flaunt his ample capabilities behind the drumkit, are as big on energy as they are on melody.

The ensnaring, emotive Tiny Minds sells a tale of lovelorn frustration with acute conviction, while Sunrise, whose chorus has presumably unintentional parallels with the Spice Girls’ Spice Up Your Life, is a festival-crowd call-to-arms in waiting. Both gratifyingly hark back to an Echo Park/Comfort in Sound-era Feeder, recapturing a magnitude in which 2008’s Silent Cry, and, to a lesser extent, 2010’s Renegades were regrettably deficient.

The edges have been smoothed somewhat, but not to Feeder’s detriment. Generation Freakshow feels like a natural development, a progression instead of a departure. The echoes of past albums are references rather than rehashes, and the more novel components – Children of the Sun’s lengthy, swooning outro, or Fools Can’t Sleep’s folky twang – are handled with finesse.

Generation Freakshow is more mature, more considered, and less noisy, but it’s nonetheless got Feeder stamped all over it. Unfortunately, with 40-something UK rockers hardly FM mainstays these days, it’s unlikely to spread the band’s brand further than their existing fanbase. But said fanbase will be more than content with this pleasing, ear-friendly assembly of solid, square-shooting rock.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/rv3q

Really hope they break top 10 for this as it's been a long time since that has happened and they deserve it.




 
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I'm looking forward to it, and have liked the songs that I have heard from it so far. But I though it is not out until on general release until Monday.
 
Never got into Feeder, probably because I only know them by their hits...and they sound pretty one dimensional.

Looks like they mixed things up a bit after their drummer passed on, I'll definetely check this out.

Cheers for bringing this to my attention :)
 
The one dimensional charge is probably fair but not unique to Feeder. They have (or had) a sound but this sounds different and there's a synth in the first one. Unheard of!

Have to say I'm undecided so far but I hope they deliver because they were an awesome band live.
 
Fire_fly said:
I'm looking forward to it, and have liked the songs that I have heard from it so far. But I though it is not out until on general release until Monday.
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Ah yeah, you're right. Got my stuff early for some reason.

[FnG]magnolia;21737511 said:
The one dimensional charge is probably fair but not unique to Feeder. They have (or had) a sound but this sounds different and there's a synth in the first one. Unheard of!

Have to say I'm undecided so far but I hope they deliver because they were an awesome band live.
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They still very much are. Always full of energy and you're pretty much guaranteed to have a good time. :)

Eames said:
Never got into Feeder, probably because I only know them by their hits...and they sound pretty one dimensional.
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I know what you mean. If I had only heard the hits and nothing else, I wouldn't be too bothered about wanting to hear their other stuff. I'm really not too fussed on tracks like Buck Rogers, Just a Day, etc.

I think people just need to give their other stuff a chance because they'd soon realise the hits really aren't even that good and that they have many, many better songs out there. It affects them playing live as well because they feel they have to play the popular songs instead of playing all of their new material to avoid disappointing people. I know they sort of dislike that. Then again, without them, they'd probably have an even smaller fanbase than they do now. :o

Hopefully this is a welcomed change that will grab them some new fans!
 
I think I'm 2 or 3 albums behind now, silent cry is the last one I purchased. Interesting to see where they have gone as I have a massive soft sport of Yesterday went too soon, Polythene and Swim (plus quite a few of the b-sides from echo park sort of era)

Going to have to give them another bash as its been a while
 
God Grant looks old now.

Feeder for me were always a 'studio band' - their sound on CD is typically super slick and multi-layered (sometimes 3/4 guitar parts at once). They do have some absolutely brilliant singles though. Just like Ash, they were one of those bands that never quite made it massive.

I liked that Tiny Minds preview :)
 
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@FeederHQ said:
"Generation Freakshow is currently at number 4 in the Official midweek album chart! Thank you to everyone who has purchased a copy so far."
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It's also Amazon's MP3 album of the week.

Let's hope they can keep it up!
 
Got a copy off Amazon yesterday, really liking it. I have Idaho stuck in my head and was having to resist the urge to start singing along with it eariler.
 
Need to bring myself to purchase this, everything I've heard thus far from this album enters back into their more 'boring' song writing state.

Which is a shame after Renegades as I thought they were returning to form. :(.
 
ots3go said:
Need to bring myself to purchase this, everything I've heard thus far from this album enters back into their more 'boring' song writing state.

Which is a shame after Renegades as I thought they were returning to form. :(.
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Not true at all! This is 10x better than Renegades.
 
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