Returning from "One Week" ago, the Barenaked Ladies fix their sights on entertaining listeners once again with their newest album, "The Barenaked Ladies Are Me." The disc contributes to the group's lighthearted and humorous style by continuing the fun.
Released Tuesday, the Canadian band's eighth effort carries the same spirit as their previous albums. With tracks entitled "Bank Job," "Bull In a China Room" and "Peterborough and the Kawarthas," the same Barenaked Ladies prose is upheld, all while keeping the songs new and updated to avoid redundancy.
The first track and initial single off the album, "Easy," provides the unyielding performance power expected of a band 16 years into its career. With a warm, comforting melody and innovative guitar to complement the lyrics, "Easy" is an ideal choice to give listeners a taste of the album's content.
"Bank Job" contains humorous lines such as, "It should have been filled with the usual ones/throwing their cash into mutual funds/we all had our ski masks and sawed off shotguns/but how do you plan for/a bank full of nuns."
There are tracks on the disc that contain insightful lyrics, while a handful lack vocal strength and come across as filler songs.
The second single from this album is also the last track, and they've clearly saved the best for last. "Wind It Up" includes everything that is the flagship style of the Barenaked Ladies. Backed by a strong instrumental performance, the vocals stay continually strong on the track, cashing in with the best lyrics on the album.
"The Barenaked Ladies Are Me," a 13-track album, is an amalgam of catchy lines and melodies with the potential to stay chiseled into listeners' minds, a mainstay of the Barenaked Ladies success.
This album has the promise for high replay value thanks to the blend of retro style and new sound, making it worthy of play after play.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
