ALOTOCB - Readers Reactions / Reviews!

[andym]

2nd listen on Sunday and I can only assume I was in a particularly pesimistic mood yesterday because some tracks are great. Blasting out Demon on a sunny day is great. Works better on big speakers than headphones as well I think. A bit off putting how some tracks are finished and well produced and having what are clearly demos mixed in with that, but can't be helped I suppose.

[def con juan]

really quite sad but honest sleeve notes this time.

I was at the all too secret Heineken gig in Wolverhampton in 96 - it wasn't great.

- this weekend's been pretty much re-living my teenage years - Mary Anne Hobbs had Clint on 6Muisc.... then the postman brings me a new PWEI CD... then more Clint on 6Muisc this morning.... In Utero reissued tomorrow... now I'm off to the shops to but 10 benson and a box of matches for less than £1.50!!!!

[mikenasty]

ARGGHHHH!!!! I hate waiting on shipping to the U.S!!!

[cartsb4horses]

Oh Amazon, you send GTA V early but this you decline to even acknowledge my order is ready to be shipped. Looks like October for me. CB indeed

[RolexTharsus]

Just done 2nd listen through.

The good: the run through Dehydration, Out of Darkness & Demon is pretty much flawless; 100% is a massive sounding tune though the lyrics are a tad cringy; T + A =$ - I'm not as down as everyone else seems to be on the swearing, Their Law is great & that's nothing but a huge beat, a riff & Clint dropping the F-bomb so it's in the same ballpark as that & I really like it - reminds me a bit of Desensitized era Pitchshifter; I'm Gonna Get Ya Baby is clearly unfinished but if that had been worked up more that had the potential to be something quite special, love the string samples at the end.

The bad: No Contest is just Fatman again; Zero Return improved by having Clint's vocals on it but still sounds weak; Big Green Head is just a mess, awful vocal effects, Hulk themed lyrics don't really work, expect this wouldn't have made the cut in the final analysis

Considering my expectations weren't too high & remembering it's a collection of bits rather than a fully fleged finished article it ain't half bad. It sounds like the Poppies, but Crabbi's absence is noticible.

Think Bronxzoo's hit the nail on the head - best 6 of this lot mixed with the best 6 off New Noise, you've got one fucker of a PWEI album!

[RolexTharsus]

Also on the DDMA disc - is anyone unconvinced by the remastering job? Don't think much was needed from the original as the production was spot on, but Familus sounds a bit muddy & lacks a bit of bottom end, then CC, RSVP & Babylon all sound a bit trebly. Or are ears just screwed?

[freedomlover]

I haven't been on this forum for quite a while as a poster, but I read what y'all say every now & then.
I say this with utmost respect, but what prompted & provoked me to make this post is some of the comments that I perceived to be harsh, although i do understand that it was their first impressions.
First off, bear in mind that this was never released as this was not a finished album, but it was still in working progress, otherwise it would have been released a lot sooner.
So whatever you expect, certainly don't expect that this is an album that is going to be on par with previous full studio albums that have gone through the finishing touches.

Also bear in mind that PWEI had evolved & shifted into a different direction in terms of sound & graham had left the band at this point as he had a child at that time & touring took its toll. PWEI were also going through financial difficulties & it was the health & Safety Messrs that finally closed down the studio they built & spent their remaining money on, that was the final nail in the coffin.

The first tracks "no contest" intro sounds like Auslander, but then breaks into a guitar riff & starts sounding a lot like fatman, but the track grew on me. Many of the songs were fused together by all band members & it was then Clint's job to add the Lyrics. Hence why most of the tracks are missing raps & had very few lines.

Hangman is quite a good songs but like someone else mentioned the vocals are butchered & distorted. Again I have to stress that this was not a completed album, it's a collection of what was working progress of a 6th studio album. It's a shame because this song had potential.

Dehydration didn't like very much & you can clearly see that it was still in working progress but bearable.

Out of darkness cometh light... I really loved this track one of my favourites. It sounds like a leftover from dos dedos mis amigos like most tracks on this release.
It has a haunting sound hanging over the track. It seems befitting to the mood of the band at the time who were experiencing difficulties & tribulations & hoping for their big break.

Demon, many ppl liked this track, but I did not enjoy it very much. I'm sure many will like this track. I thought that this was the original concept behind that track that I think vile evils released where it says "you have the mind of a motherfucking demon"

100% is it, is a nice song but it sounds like a more aggresive version of "no contest" & there are extra guitar riffs & sounds to make it sound different enough. However the hook is very similar to the opening track & again "fatman".
I still like this song a lot & it does grow on you.

1-800 is an instrumental, I did not enjoy it very much but I thought it was reasonable enough to get a release however the repetitiveness & the samples made it boring to listen to.

I am the one, the highlight of the album for me had to be this song. I heard a poor quality recording live version of this song & even then thought this song had great potential.
This may as well have been a single. It illustrates the darker sound PWEI had evolved into, definitely influenced & directed by Trent reznor.

Talent plus attitude equals dollars. I don't give a fuck what anyone thinks this is a great song lol. I think someone had dubbed this the "fuck" song. Adam wrote in the sleeve notes that he had hoped that they released this track & regretted that they didn't. It was meant to have been released as a single before the bands untimely demise. It actually sparked a lot of confidence amongst the group built the moment for many of the tracks on this release when Clint shared it with the group.
Some might dismiss it as without artist merit & uninspired, but I'm sure they would not say that about "their law". This was an aggresive fuck you to critics & commerciality.

Point blank was another great song. Fast paced but sounds choppy in some sections.

Green head seemed to have potential but the vocals suffered from the same effects that were on "hangman".
It's like a song about the Incredible Hulk lol, I laughed when I heard it.
Just like every song on this release there's heavy guitars & industrial sounds. It sounds distorted but bearable.

I'm gonna get ya baby, seems like the most appropriate outro, it includes a line from "no contest".
It sounds like it was an instrumental where Clint was experimenting with & trying different ideas & lyrics.

Conclusion: I think this album had great potential, had it been completed & recorded properly it would have been a better album than dos dedos in mind opinion. And I'm not exaggerating, this was exactly where they should have been heading & had they not suffered so many blows during that period & became bankrupt then this would have been their big break as they had the right label behind them.
It upsets me that they threw the towel in then, as they had finally reached their pinnacle & Trent could have really made sure this album got the recognition it deserved.

Overall the album might not have many potential singles & completely uncommercial but it was definitely a step up from dos dedos. You could see the edge that the buzzard incorporated into this album.
I suggest ppl listen to this without having the most highest expectations but see it for what it is.
When I first heard Kid A for radiohead, I felt cheated & dissapointed but grew to appreciate its sounds & the way the album meshed together so well.
I listened to this album 3 times today from start to finish, it's growing on me & I think it works best in the order Clint has put it in.
I give it 3/5. Tracks that stood out were "no contest", "out of darkness cometh light" "iamtheone", "talent plus attitude equals dollars", "point blank".

[freedomlover]

[VMNP]

I've given it a few listens over the weekend and i'm really bloody loving it, i'll even take back what i said about 1 - 800 Outsider as it's really growing on me now!

[osr]

just checked my amazon emails, expected delivery date 8th oct. great....