Search - Life & Times :: Tragic Boogie (Dig)

A Sound Like No Other... (4 1/2 Stars)

T. Dale | MPLS, MN | 04/14/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"4 years in the making has not turned out to be anything close to disappointing. Tragic Boogie took longer then usual to produce, so the Life and Times made sure it would win us over.



The band has placed a wide range of songs on the album, all of which flow nicely together. From the opener "Que Sera Sera" it's best to turn it up and leave it there. A high energy rocker thats best played while leaving your car windows down on a nice day. To "The Lucid Dream" a more introspective, ambient tune. The album continues to gather speed and demand attention as it progresses, with a great range of hooks, interesting chord progressions, and wonderful melodies. There really isn't a bad tune on here. You can trust the band to deliver quality. Each member of the band really stands out. Huge and powerful drums, bottom-end song shaping bass, and it seems Epley's guitars tie it all together. The guitar tracks are rarely at the for-front, which makes for a smooth blended sound.



I would recommend this album to anyone who is a musician or simply loves music. I can't imagine someone not loving this album if they fall into ether of these categories..."

Challenging, atmospheric, visual

FKD215 | 06/10/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a lot more challenging than their previous stuff. The arrangements are odd. Like having the vocal tracks sometimes in the background, and heavily effected/distorted, while the guitar patterns are in the foreground - it's the aural equivalent of almost having to squint to see something. Relatedly, this album is very visual for me. The effects and production and spatial arrangements give it a darkly colorful atmosphere for me. Almost abstract. (I'm a painter, and this album has given me a bunch of new painting ideas.) And it gets better and better the more you listen. All told, I think it's a breakthrough for them. They seemed to care about the abstract sounds as much as the bones/structure of the songs. They're in new territory, and they're doing a lot of exploration. The formula's not yet completely worked out. But that's all to the good, and I hope they make 100 more albums."

Tragic Boogie

Brett Wilms | Cleveland, OH | 05/21/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The Life and Times do a number of things well. As is often said, they sound like a lot more than a three-piece band. They have a true skill for having a "heavy" sound without being "HEAVY" (if that makes sense).



They tried some new things with this album - arrangement and effect wise. Some of it worked better than others, but the majority of the tunes are winners. You can hear a new style coming from this record, however there is still a taste of early era-The Life and Times (see "Old Souls") and even a hint of Shiner (see the bridge on "Tragic Boogie").



Tragic Boogie is a good album by The Life and Times, producing some really splendid additions to their musical catalog with "Confetti", "Que Sera Sera", and "Tragic Boogie". But with the inclusion of some throwaway tracks ("Pain Don't Hurt", "Little 4Notes") and songs that lacked cohesion to the album's overall feel ("The Lucid Dream", "Catching Crumbs") it left the record with holes that should have been filled by something of higher quality. If I could rate this album 3.75 out of 5 I would."