Ted Leo and the Pharmacists - Living With The Living

LABEL:

Touch and Go

GENRE:

Indie/Punk

RELEASE:

March 20, 2007

LENGTH:

61 min 7 sec

RATING:

Over the years, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists have been able to accomplish what few others have. Despite possessing a sound that often gets labeled as indie-pop, the band continues to satisfy a devoted and loyal fan base in the punk community. Known for their thought-provoking indie-punk sound, social consciousness and tendency to write songs that drag on forever, Ted Leo and his band have managed to stay on the independent music circuit since 1999. While relatively little changed in their sound during their first five years, they crafted the amazingly well-written Shake the Sheets in 2004, their most politically-oriented album to date. As a result, their biggest hurdle to overcome was going to be the next album in their catalogue, which didn't see daylight until earlier this year. As important as it is to review each album independently, you just can't ignore the fact that improvement over their last effort was going to be very difficult, and could easily result in a huge let-down.

So, did Ted succeed in this quest? Well, the short answer is, no. Obviously, a short answer won't suffice, so let me explain. Shake the Sheets was, thankfully, almost completely devoid of the one element in the band's history that seemed to be holding them back: the epically-long song. It was an excellent all-around piece of art and it created a world of expectations that could not be met. Living With the Living is good, classic Ted Leo. All the familiar elements are there and while that might satisfy many fans, it's a hard pill for me to swallow considering just how much I was expecting. Perhaps this is my own flaw, but there is just something missing. While Shake the Sheets was catchy and full of energy, put simply, this album is not.

After a seemingly unnecessary intro tack, it finally starts off strong with "The Sons of Cain" and "Army Bound," and the next three tracks are good while they're building up momentum to choruses that fall flat on their faces, most obvious in the downright irritating "A Bottle of Buckie." On top of that, "La Costa Brava," "The Unwanted Things" and "The Lost Brigade" are each somewhat enjoyable for the first few minutes, but in sheer length, they easily overstay their welcome. Two of the best tracks are reminiscent of Shake the Sheets, like "The World Stops Turning" and "Some Beginner's Mind," which in my opinion, should have closed the album out and helped save itself from suicide. The last two tracks, "The Toro and the Toreador" and "C.I.A" absolutely refuse to end, together totaling nearly thirteen minutes, much too long even for people who don't have dangerously short attention spans.

In songwriting, lengthiness is not inherently evil, and I feel bad treating it so badly in this review. It is, however, Ted Leo's kryptonite and it severely inhibits his ability to write a great album, as Living With The Living clocks in at just over a ghastly hour. Take out the snoozers and you have a record that almost lives up to its predecessor, which only had one song that was over five minutes long. I also sort of feel like I'm being overly critical by constantly comparing this album to Shake the Sheets, but keep in mind that if my rating was based on this comparison, earning three stars would be the musical equivalent to getting away with murder. I do not completely dislike this album, but I know Ted Leo and the gang can do better and if they expect their albums to actually be listened to all the way through, they need to give a little more thought to their decisions, especially when they choose not to leave a few more songs on the cutting room floor.