Search - Hater :: 2nd

Ben shepherd is back (finally)

Brian Koschak | springfield, mo United States | 05/14/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"well, it took ten years for this album to surface, but hater is back and ben shepherd finally returns to the scene from whichever rock he was hiding under. gaining a certain amount of fame and creative respect through his bass work with soundgarden, ben shepherd is the crazy genius/hermit that is just not heard from enough. Hater is a worthy vehicle for shepherd to make his return with, and this album is more focused and far better sounding than their first record (which i still cannot believe was released by a major label). their first wasn't exactly a masterpiece, it was a spontaneous and quirky collection of bizarre pop songs, but it did have it's own classicness that still stands up today and "the 2nd" extends the mood even further. the tunes on the new one are more thought out, better executed, and beautifully recorded and mixed. ben shepherd's vision of a pop song never ceases to amaze me, it's so left of center it's hilarious... and when his voice hits an off note, it's not by accident... it sounds just the way he wants it. i was sad to see that ben's INCREDIBLE bass skills were absent from the record (he covers all vocal and guitar duties), but alan davis is more than capable in laying down a groove with legendary drummer matt cameron and there is a definete layer of skill backing the simplicity of the songs. shepherd at times sounds like beggar's banquet-era mick jagger reincarnated as a 1977 snot-nosed punk, and once you crack into this record, shepherd's "so-bad-it's-great" lyrics sound f**king fantastic.



and that's the biggest thing about "the 2nd". there was a bit of codebreaking needed for me to get into it. i casually scanned through the tracks on the way to work and didn't really hear anything too groundbreaking or even very interesting. but i threw it on at night, smoked a bit, put on the headphones, and let ben shepherd and co bring me on a strange little ride. once you are in, you stay in, and the album is great.



hater "the 2nd" isn't the greatest rock record ever recorded. not even close. but it's solid, and fun, and dark, and weird. if radio were cool, maybe hater would get some radioplay. maybe if the rock gods were behind the band, they would give hater a gig touring with Queens of the stone age and the eagles of death metal and turn some cool kids onto this obscure yet classic little weird-o band.





i'm not sure if hater will ever put out a third album. maybe they shouldn't. i dunno. but i do hope to hear a record from ben shepherd sometime before 2015. he's one of my alltime favorite artists (his soundgarden songs were among their best) and have total respect for everything he does. buy this and get into it. it's good.

"

Stunningly simple, simply stunning

S. Chappell | New York City | 06/10/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Ben Shepard has a sound and a cadence that is rarely heard and very underappreciated. The songs he wrote that are on Soundgarden's albums were the most bizarre and, a decade after the end of Soundgarden, still among my absolute favorites that they recorded. It was after he joined that I really began to dig their sound.



As for this album, you can't ask for a better groove than "Zombie Hand". The syncopated, switch-hitter beat is too much fun. I reminds me of some of Soundgarden's more tricky sounding pieces. "I Walk Alone" is also terrific. The lyrics are so brutally honest I cheer them on! After 3 days in heavy rotation, I dig this album from top to bottom. I have played it for other people and they all were really liking it with even just a couple of minutes of listening.



The White Stripes would kill for Ben Shepard's songcraft and simple artistic presence and Matt Cameron is one of the most impressive percussionists I have ever heard. He doesn't dissappoint on this album. His playing is so slick and laid back that you almost don't notice how incredibly tight and complex it can be.



I am absolutely stoked to find this band back on the map with a fresh batch of stupid ditties. I hope this marks the return of Hater, not just a rare sighting. Buy it and have fun with it. Besides, it's cheap!"