HAIM

yeah, its like a bonus. lord knows there were plenty of 80's studio creations that looked and sounded mighty sad on stage when it was time for them to hit the road and pimp their single.

cyndi lauper being the exception of course. hahaha. she was friggin' amazing live.

I'm kind of revising my earlier complaints now. I think I was too hard on the singer. But I think that came from the disconnect I hear between her voice and the studio versions of these songs. I totally understand now why I thought it sounded like karaoke. It doesn't come across at all that way in the live versions. It almost sounds to me like the standing studio versions are themselves remixes, just remixed by someone a lot less talented than Lindstrom.

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wk, the live vocals may be technically sloppier but they read as less sloppy to me because they integrate with the other stuff happening in the music.

Scott, you're right, but the sad thing here is that this band seems like a legit live band who was then polished to death in the studio, rather than a studio creation forced to go tour in order to pimp product. I wish somewhere someone along the line had had the courage to produce them a little closer to how they actually sound.

(PS: I don't think anybody is "wrong" for liking or prefering the studio versions, in case I'm coming across as too much of a grumpy hardass.)

I think most ppl are saying there isn't an appreciable gulf/difference in quality between the studio and live versions

yeah, the people who can't hear out of tune singing

um

People like DJP, who can't hear out of tune singing.

I love the drum sounds on the record. And the singing.

And everything else.

I'd probably like the record less if it was more stripped down.

hi guys what'd I miss

And also none of the remixes I've heard are anywhere near as good as the originals.

The record actually feels stripped down to me compared to the live versions. There's more stuff happening; the sonic-events-per-second rate is higher. But it feels more flat.

Or maybe I don't understand "stripped down"

People like DJP, who can't hear out of tune singing.

well if you can't hear the difference between the earlier version of forever and the tuned up version on the album then yeah

Reverend OTM

agreed. When I heard the remixes last spring I actually got "uhhh" about the album, which is unfair but whatever. I'm glad I was wrong.

Their Letterman performance sounds just like the record, just with more bass-face.

Also, this is now easily the album of the year for me. The number of great songs and relentless hooks on this record is overwhelming - enough for an entire career.

Also, I really like what Tim said about the rhythm and vocal interplay.

are there two different versions of the wire? i thought i heard two different ones. i like the one with the eagles heartache tonight beat. i always wanted someone to use that beat. i like that it reminds me of shania and i think mutt would have made it even bigger. but its cool to get a shania flashback out of nowhere.

i never see spencer chow posts. i must hang out in the wrong circles.

there are multiple versions of "The Wire" but they all have the same beat iirc

i never see spencer chow posts. i must hang out in the wrong circles.

I was thinking roughly the same thing, surprised to see he still posts here. But he's been here all along under other user names.

I think I might like this album mostly *because* of the production.

I only used one other username for a while about 4 years ago (just haven't been posting much). Curious about these other me's!

But anyway, realized I listened to the HAIM record more in a few days than i have RAM in how many months?

Curious about these other me's!

Haha, I meant to write "maybe he's been here. . ." Somehow the maybe got lost.

But anyway, realized I listened to the HAIM record more in a few days than i have RAM in how many months?

and a good man you are for this

ok i got curious.

i didn't really expect to like this.

but it's really a great pop album. what can you say? they got the tunes.

at various times in my life i've thought "ok, as a society we've figured it out, THIS is what great music sounds like, let's just DO THIS FROM NOW ON" - i remember DJP had similar sentiments about sonz of a loop da loop era hardcore at some point. and i feel like haim has lit upon this particular constellation of 80s pop with the same idea. as if everything since john cougar mellencamp has been a constant, annealing process of refinement.

in this respect it has a lot in common with the daft punk record but for some reason, feeling out for the reference points on the haim record feels FUN and on the daft punk record sort of feels obligatory.

you can just mentally add "to me" at the end of all my posts obv

well there's a whole conceptual layer with RAM that does that obv, this seems a lot more natural in its selection and incorporation of influences

yeah i keep wanting to come up with the secret but most obvious thing they are cribbing from that everyone has overlooked heretofore. it's peter gabriel! no wait, bob seger!

"at various times in my life i've thought "ok, as a society we've figured it out, THIS is what great music sounds like, let's just DO THIS FROM NOW ON" - i remember DJP had similar sentiments about sonz of a loop da loop era hardcore at some point. and i feel like haim has lit upon this particular constellation of 80s pop with the same idea. as if everything since john cougar mellencamp has been a constant, annealing process of refinement."

That's an interesting take on your embrace of this record--I like it.

more bands should imitate mid eighties Coog actually!

Scarecrow meets Cupid and Psyche '85 would be my lode star.

they don't sound like one thing. which is to their credit. or one obvious thing. like, you know, Chic!

the haerts ep sounds way more like the fleetwood mac pastiche that everyone says this sounds like

i remember DJP had similar sentiments about sonz of a loop da loop era hardcore at some point.

you say this like I don't still feel this way

please accept my apologies for mischaracterizing the durability of your hardcore affections DJP!

Haerts has some Mac ghosts as well, but I wouldn't say they're full blown pastiche.

Here's my favorite Mac pastiche group: https://soundcloud.com/lover-lover

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6mXw56q3hU

itunes exclusive track comin atcha

how is it an itunes exclusive if it's on youtube

^

When does the next album come out?

I had the same thought about this vs. RAM (even though I like RAM more than most of ILM, I think). Daft Punk's record is self-consciously a tribute, and Haim's tributes are all unselfconscious. More "We like to make music that sounds like this," than "HEY, remember when music sounded like this?"

(And thankfully no spoken-word cameo from Trevor Horn or whoever.)