Steely Dan, "Two Against Nature" (2000)
By Pico:
Twenty years is a long time to go without a proper studio album, but long-suffering fans of Donald Fagen and Walter Becker’s Steely Dan finally got relief in February of 2000 with the release of Two Against Nature.
WE'VE MOVED!: Dablog by DaSlob is now ... SOMETHING ELSE. Find the remainder of this review through the new link.
Labels: Baby Boomer Bliss, Steely Dan
posted by daSLOB at 6/27/2006 07:55:00 PM
2 Comments:
NICK DERISO: I was a huge fan, so I'd always check in on the solo efforts, and hope for a reunion. Meaning: I was SO ready to love Fagen's second solo album in 1993, "Kamakiriad." Bought it out of the box.
[deflation] Sigh. [/deflation]
I was hoping for "Aja," in the 1990s. What I got was the same kind of boring vamps that characterized that obvious Motown-ish schlock Fagen had been doing in the years after the excellent "Nightfly" album. It seemed more and more that Fagen needed Becker, and badly.
Then, I noticed that Becker produced the thing. Oops.
A quick rundown: The drums sounded fake, the writing felt lazy, the concept was drearily antiseptic.
[resignation] OK. [/resignation]
There is, however, one distinct saving grace -- and a neat precursor to their successful reunion.
Nick's Pick was the Fagen tune that was co-written with Becker, "Snowbound" ... now, that was a LOT more like it. True collaboration seemed to be the key.
Glad they got back to it.
I actually like the middle section of Kamakiriad, from "Snowbound" (save for Becker's aimless guitar noodling at the end) to the Aja-like "The Dunes". But even these tunes are lightweight compared to Fagen's other works.
Speaking of which, how do you like "Morph The Cat", eh? I'd call it a return to form myself.
-p
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