Search - Mindless Self Indulgence :: If

MSI Comes Out Swinging

EerieVonEvil | The Rabbit Hole | 04/29/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"First off, I'd like to thank MSI for making an album longer than 26 minutes. They hit the 45 minute mark. Much appreciated! Hah. But anyway, IF is a great album full of all the things that make MSI enjoyable and more. This time, MSI's sound has evolved into a more new wave punk sound. Jimmy Urine's vocals still have some hip-hop tendencies, but there is more singing (and screaming) throughout this record. The guitars have been turned way up and riffs are abundant, giving the album a crunchy punk feel. The synths on this album have an 80's feel to it making IF sound new wave at times which is really cool. You can even hear the bass throughout this record. The lyrics are still usual MSI fare: Prescription drugs, getting laid, dancing, getting laid, and Jimmy's favorite, not being able to get it up. What a weirdo. A lot of the songs on IF have been played live for a couple years so they aren't really new but its nice to finally hear them all sparkly studio fresh now. For instance, you can find Revenge in a more stripped down version on Alienating Our Audience. Now, Revenge is tweaked with Lyn-Z's vocals and some more synths. Cool song. Other highlights include Animal, Mastermind, Never Wanted To Dance, Pay For It, and the hilariously weird Mark David Chapman. I'll admit, I had kind of gotten bored with MSI in the last couple of years having only released one real new studio album in a 5 year period. In my opinion, IF is ten times better than You'll Rebel To Anything, which I think was too short and not nearly as interesting aside from the Nintendo samples throughout the record. As much as I love Frankenstein Girls and Tight for the originality of those records, I much prefer the direction that MSI is going with IF. The straight-forward in-your-face aspect of this album is what makes it so cool. I'm a punk and new wave fan so this album satisfies me on both those levels, while adding that weird ADD-addled flavor that MSI is known for. I totally recommend this record to fans of rock/electronic.



Nuff said.

"

Packaging/Bonus Review

V. Alvarez | Fort Worth, TX | 07/18/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"If you're like me, you're probably looking at this in comparison to the original release version of IF, and wondering if you should spend the extra $10 on this album instead. And since I didn't read anything specific about that when I was ordering, I thought a review on the packaging difference and extras would be nice. I think everyone's pretty much covered the music reviews dead on too, so this is mostly for collecting purposes. :)



This 2-Disc album is not in a regular jewel case. Instead, it folds out into three panels with pockets inside, with the main CD in the left panel, the booklet in the middle and the bonus disc in the right one. Anyone who is familiar with Jhonen Vasquez will automatically be drawn to the artwork found in IF, which is very detailed and colorful that's reminiscent of his JTHM/Squee comic books. If you don't know who he is (or just know him for Invader Zim), you'll be introduced to his playful yet morbid style of humor which actually suits MSI really well. Definitely not mom-friendly (duh), but it's certainly a crowd pleaser. There's even a mini-comic inside the booklet that explains the artwork on both CDs as well, which is a small yet effective connection that I found enjoyable. This is a must-have if you enjoy purchasing CD's for their overall presentation and for sharing purposes (with friends asking me about MSI simply because they saw this in my car, for example).



The Bonus disc contains 4 videos of MSI performing live at different venues along with the official music video to Animal. The audio and quality of the videos are great, but if you've watched their performances on YouTube already, it might leave you feeling as if you've seen these before and might not be worth the extra money, but otherwise are great to have in a collection. If you have friends that might not know who MSI are and are curious about them, this comes in handy as well. Also, in comparison to the design of the actual physical album, I found the main menu of the disc to be a bit disappointing. It's just the cover with simple yellow font on top of the fingers that links to each video, which kind of felt a bit cheap compared to other bonus discs that I've owned. A little more creativity would've really added that extra kick in comparison to the regular version (such as an easter egg), but at this point I could be nit picky.



Overall this is a great addition to any fan's collection who are both new and familiar with MSI. Whether you like their previous albums or this one music-wise is completely up to you though. I personally felt disappointed at first, but after listening to it for two months straight, I absolutely love it. Have fun!"

Yes But..

R. Hamn | Houston, TX USA | 05/02/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I love the album, but at the same time i feel that Jimmy is catering to a new generation and has tried something new. I'm so glad that I finally have a studio copy of Revenge, but I liked the way he dragged out the title in the live track. It feels like he really has a new direction with his material, but I would have given my right arm for this album two years ago...

Overall, this is an excellent album but don't expect another Tight or Frankenstein Girls because something so catastrophic to the music world could never be duplicated. If you didn't enjoy You'll Rebel To Anything, for the hard hitting punk electronica less hip hop is on this album."