Janes Addiction - Strays

[Zobb]

If you liked Janes at all during the their hayday in the 90's you are going to love this new album. It isnt anything revolutionary, they didnt set out to reinvent themselves, it is just classic Janes. They may get critisized for that, but to me its very refreshing. In this era of pop music out living its natural lifespan and super groups such as Metallica selling out thier own sound to catch the "Korn train", I couldnt be happier with it.

This album more than that of their previous releases is carried by Dave Navaro's guitar work, which is simply awesome. Perry still has his very unique voice to differentiate them from sounding like anything else. It looks like the drugs that broke them up in the 90's, didnt mess up his lyrical prose either. Rather I think Dave has just matured more musically and can know carry the band rather than relying on Perry's uniqueness to do so for them. His guitar tone guitar is more powerful and more crafted.

There are 11 tracks, and I like 8 of them a lot. The others arent bad, just not great. Tracks 1-5 will have you hitting repeat quite a few times. Track 1, True Nature lulls you into a typical Janes songs, but only for a second before it smacks you up side the head. Track 5, The Ritches, is one of the best on the album and will be one those songs stuck in your head all day.

[Elidroth]

Never cared for Jane's Addiction myself.. at least on vinyl/CD. Saw them live though on Later with Carson Daly and man what a difference. JA is obviously a band meant to be experienced live.. much different sound.

[Buazag Bonesteel]

JA falls into the category of good enough to listen too and if they come on the radio I don't change the station but not appealing enough to me to buy there stuff. Quite possibly, like a lot of bands out there if I really paid attention and LISTENED to them instead of just letting it be background noise I might like them more than I think I do heh.

Sometimes it's just a matter of timing and mood. When do you hear a certain song and how do you feel when you do.

For instance quite a while ago my brother gave me a tape he had made for me that had a lot of Iced Earth on it. My first reaction was to tell him that I didn't care much for them. They seemed to me like thay sounded a lot like Flotsam and Jetsam and their sound didn't seem terribly original. I didn't really listen to them again for a while and almost forgot about them. Then at some point later on he brought the Dark Saga CD over and put it on while we were gaming over a weekend and something about it really grabbed my attention.....enough so that I bought the CD myself. Very quickly they went from being a band that I had written off as not terribly good or inovative to being one of my favorite bands. Lucky it happened when it did or I might not have cared about going to see them in concert when they toured through Rochester with The Quiet Room (also very awesome) and Jag Panzer. Without a doubt Iced Earth remains to this day one of the best concerts I have ever seen. No one else has matched the sheer intensity that Matt Barlow displays on stage. They didn't have the props or imagery of a Savatage or the sheer immensity of a Metallica but they filled that room with a raw power and emotion the likes of which I haven't seen from anyone else ever. It was a sad day when I learned that Matt had left the band to pursue non-musical things. Even if the band goes on in some fashion there is simply no replacing him in any way that will retain the heart of Iced Earth........glad I saw them when I did.

[Eomer]

Copied this from another forum where I wrote it:

Jane's new album is decent. First of all it has that shitty fucking copy protection on it, which stopped me from being able to rip the first song only, woo. Good thing they wasted the effort on that. The second thing that pissed me off is that to get the bonus DVD with live footage etc, you have to pay for the special edition one, which is a few extra bucks. A lot of other bands have been doing that shit for free (Staind, Eminem, Finger Eleven, Queens of the Stone Age, Linkin Park), so that kind of choked me as well. I am sure the members have nothing to do with it of course, so their label can suck my cock, seriously.

I would start a new thread for a review, but I am gonna be brief and it wouldn't be worthwhile. I got an immediate bad feeling the second I saw the cover. Basically a glam shot of the four of them. This from the band which released albums with naked women on fire on the cover, or two naked women with a naked Perry Farrell having a threesome. That right there to me was a big hint.

The album itself is decent, and if any other band had come out with it I would be dancing around saying what a great band and CD. But this is Jane's, they aren't just any band, and to me the album was a disapointment. Nothing new, original, or even a little experimental on the CD. No songs much longer than five minutes, and most clock in at around 3-4. No quieter, catchy songs like Jane Says or Been Caught Steeling, or even Slow Divers (there is one, Everybody's Fool, but I don't like it much). No long, epic ass kicking songs like Three Days or Ted Just Admit It. Basically just a bunch of average alterna-rock songs, with guitar that sounds like it was ripped straight out of Tom Morello's throw away bin. Drums pound pretty good though, I am loving the Perkins.

So I dunno, it's a solid album I guess. I don't regret buying it. I just expected a lot more from Jane's, especially after the few original songs on Kettle Whistle. Slow Divers, So What?!, and My Cat's Name is Maceo were all actually pretty good songs.

*end*

I don't think this new album is "classic Jane's" in the least. It's "cash-in Jane's" more like. And drugs didn't break up the band. Perry Farrell decided to break up the band because it was turning into too popular of a band. He often said that when he couldn't walk down the street without being recognized, he would end the band, because he relied on every day experiences to make and write his music, and it was hard to have those when you are living in a celebrity bubble. Also, Perry Farrell is not his real name. Reading it out loud differently, it can also be pronounced "Peripheral". That's not a coincidence.

It just sucks to hear one of the best and most influential bands, who arguably had a large hand in starting alternative music in the late 80's and early 90's and are right up there with a few others as the most influential in the past 20 years, come out with such a bland and uninspired CD.

[Exitilus]

Matt Barlow left Iced Earth =\

Not that I've really enjoyed them greatly in awhile, but I wasn't happy about him leaving either - the rythm guitars are rather amazing, but Barlow really made the band. (replaced by ripper owens)

-Exit

[Zobb]

Originally posted by Eomer
Jane's new album is decent. First of all it has that shitty fucking copy protection on it, which stopped me from being able to rip the first song only, woo.

Hmm, maybe thats on the special edition version only. I ripped mine as soon as I got home.



I don't think this new album is "classic Jane's" in the least. It's "cash-in Jane's" more like. And drugs didn't break up the band. Perry Farrell decided to break up the band because it was turning into too popular of a band. He often said that when he couldn't walk down the street without being recognized, he would end the band, because he relied on every day experiences to make and write his music, and it was hard to have those when you are living in a celebrity bubble.

Ya thats the cool, "Im so rebelious, anti-establishment, and counter-culture." excuse he gave, and its total bullshit. It was drugs and ego clashing between Perry and Dave. I love Jane's and think Perry is one of the most original lead men ever, but he is a fucktard in real life.

I think a lot of the songs are original and catchy, like I said The Riches is very catchy, but definitely the sound isnt original. Im ok with that, I dont think a band has to reinvent their sound every album, as long as they arent regurgitating their hits.