Phoenix "United" -- C/D?

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For my money, fantastic, though I haven't the slightest idea what's become of them.

That said, parts 2 and 3 of "Funky Square Dance" are an abomination...

― Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Sunday, 22 June 2003 16:34 (twenty years ago) link

i LOVE parts 2 & 3 of "FSD", c'mon whaddya talkin' about. the rest of the album is good too. re 'what's become of them', I think they played as Air's live band but that was a while back now. (re Pablo Cruise, Phil Dellio made a great joke about them in 'I Wanna Be Sedated' but then fucked it up by belaboring the point)

― dave q, Sunday, 22 June 2003 16:38 (twenty years ago) link

Yeah, I think the backing up Air thing was pre-United, but it could have continued thereafter -- I'm not sure.

As for parts 2 & 3 of FSD, I dunno -- they seem a lot like uncompelling beats w/ "funny" guitar stuff and crowd noises and all. The rest of the record's so brilliantly careful to balance that stuff against tunes and sincerity, in FSD, they just seem...out of place. I mean, there's "stupid" and then there's "stoopid"...

― Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Sunday, 22 June 2003 16:46 (twenty years ago) link

what's 'funny' about the guitar stuff? i bet you thought 'Aerodynamic' was supposed to be 'ironic' too!

― dave q, Sunday, 22 June 2003 16:51 (twenty years ago) link

I was actually just listening to "Aerodynamic" -- that rocks!! I mean, it really rocks, whereas "FSD" just kind of...wanks -- and not in a good way (I should be clear -- "Aerodynamic" wanks hard, but in a really good way). I dunno -- maybe sometimes, parody just sort of only parodies and isn't really anything outside of that context. At least, that's the way it seems on parts 2 and 3...

― Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Sunday, 22 June 2003 16:58 (twenty years ago) link

I sorta see what yr getting at but considering those vox along w/ the gtr solo - what's it supposed to be a parody *of*?

― dave q, Sunday, 22 June 2003 17:19 (twenty years ago) link

Uhhh, "party music"? Of some kind, I guess... I dunno.

What this debate is sort of missing is the fact that the rest of the record is fucking aces. I once heard "If I Ever Feel Better" described as Hall and Oates meets Chic, which is pretty spot-on. "Honeymoon," great stuff, nice, er, harp. Great stuff...

― Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Sunday, 22 June 2003 17:36 (twenty years ago) link

i love the whole of funky squaredance and love that that is the turn that the album takes. it's inspired. i also wanna know what happened to those guys and why no follow-up.

― scott seward, Sunday, 22 June 2003 18:07 (twenty years ago) link

i watched shallow hal on video last night ( i know, i know...) and there they were. i'm with NTI on this one though, FSD is where i tune out on the record.

― gaz (gaz), Sunday, 22 June 2003 21:17 (twenty years ago) link

two weeks pass...

Funky Squaredance is one of the best songs ever! It's insane and catchy, country, prog, vocoder etc - unbelievably successful.

As for If I Ever Feel Better, there's something obviously Marr-ish in the guitar too.

I LOVE Phoenix and hope they release more.

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Thursday, 10 July 2003 07:42 (twenty years ago) link

six months pass...

Air played a new(?) Phoenix song on their Breezeblock mixset on Radio1. I think it's called "Everything is Everything" and it is fantastical!

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Friday, 30 January 2004 20:48 (twenty years ago) link

is it housey?

― notRonan (Ronan), Friday, 30 January 2004 21:09 (twenty years ago) link

not really, but it's more electronical than most of United. I could see it being remixed easily - also, who knows what the rest of any material they're working on might sound like...

here's a link to the show: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/dance/breezeblock/tracklistings.shtml

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Friday, 30 January 2004 21:25 (twenty years ago) link

Have you heard the Buffalo Bunch remix of "If I Ever Feel Better". It's kind of a classic to me and alot of friends.

― Ronan (Ronan), Friday, 30 January 2004 21:34 (twenty years ago) link

oh definitely! and the Todd Edwards mix too: "nooouewowouw I'm saved by grace.."

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Friday, 30 January 2004 21:42 (twenty years ago) link

Oh haven't heard that, I must check it out. I love his track on the last Kitsune comp.

― Ronan (Ronan), Friday, 30 January 2004 21:48 (twenty years ago) link

Good to hear 'em in Lost In Translation too.
It's about time we had another Phoenix record.

― harveyw (harveyw), Friday, 30 January 2004 22:05 (twenty years ago) link

I just ordered in some new Todd record that promises "a change of direction", which sounds like he may have been reading some of his recent reviews. I'll always regret not picking up the 'If I Ever Feel Better' 12", tho' its 'classic' status was always kinda mystifying (yer standard student-worshipped dance record, no offense Ronan). The Kitsune comp is great, listened to it again just yesterday.

― Barima (Barima), Saturday, 31 January 2004 15:20 (twenty years ago) link

The lyrics and sound of Phoenix fit perfectly with Lost In Translation (both are outsiders). Just recently got back into it.

― nathalie (nathalie), Saturday, 31 January 2004 15:23 (twenty years ago) link

two months pass...

Maybye someone can share this album on internet? please?

― reztart, Wednesday, 14 April 2004 09:44 (twenty years ago) link

Errr....Dud? It's wishy washy indie, nothing more, nothing less.

― ___ (___), Wednesday, 14 April 2004 11:28 (twenty years ago) link

one year passes...

Just threw it on the other night -- and it seriously holds up. Was the consensus that Alphabetical was better, worse or about the same? I dl'd it but deleted it for some reason...

― Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Sunday, 17 April 2005 16:12 (nineteen years ago) link

I currently like "Alphabetical" better. Both are albums that have grown on me with every listen though, which is of course always a good thing.

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Sunday, 17 April 2005 16:15 (nineteen years ago) link

I have to admit -- the other night, "Funky Square Dance" parts 2 and 3 even started to make sense to me.

― Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Sunday, 17 April 2005 16:16 (nineteen years ago) link

Like Spoon: a few great singles, generally flaccid albums.

― Zed Szetlian (Finn MacCool), Sunday, 17 April 2005 16:17 (nineteen years ago) link

Recommendations on more records that sound like United?

― Mil (Mil), Monday, 18 April 2005 00:46 (nineteen years ago) link

ten months pass...

*Sigh* I love United. It hasn't lost an ounce of flavor to me. I tried to like the 2nd album, but it just never did much for me. I'm gonna keep trying though. Do you think the world is made up of people who love funky squaredance and people who can't stand funky squaredance?

― scott seward (scott seward), Tuesday, 28 February 2006 14:59 (eighteen years ago) link

why isn't this thread 400 posts long? there must be another thread where everyone talks about united.

― scott seward (scott seward), Tuesday, 28 February 2006 15:00 (eighteen years ago) link

four years pass...

'party time' just came on shuffle. i could have sworn it was supergrass.

― charlie h, Wednesday, 6 October 2010 11:40 (thirteen years ago) link

scotts post here are both soooo otm. still my fav phoenix album

― just sayin, Wednesday, 6 October 2010 11:41 (thirteen years ago) link

seven years pass...

I miss these guys so much but no one stay perfect forever

― calstars, Sunday, 20 May 2018 20:46 (five years ago) link

Ti Amo was last year and i really don't remember anything about it.

― Bee OK, Thursday, 24 May 2018 03:21 (five years ago) link

Ti Amo had at least 3 top tier Phoenix songs, was a bit underwhelming overall though

― ufo, Thursday, 24 May 2018 03:30 (five years ago) link

I thought Ti Amo was solid. Maybe their weakest album overall, but I still got a lot from it. Has a Phoenix albums poll been done on here? I'd be interested to see which album would come out on top. I really have a tough time picking between the first four. They've all been my favourite at some point (apart from that week when I though Bankrupt was their masterpiece!)

― kitchen person, Thursday, 24 May 2018 03:53 (five years ago) link

Ti Amo had at least 3 top tier Phoenix songs, was a bit underwhelming overall though

Which are?

― calstars, Thursday, 24 May 2018 03:58 (five years ago) link

I really love J-Boy, Fior Di Latte, and Lovelife. WAP is solidly their best album though

― ufo, Thursday, 24 May 2018 05:46 (five years ago) link

It’s Never Been Like That is the record for me. Suspect I mentioned this on the WAP thread but it was the theme music for the weekend at my bachelor party. I’ve heard all the criticism – that it’s sub-Strokes, lacks the dance element of their first two records, etc. But I’ve never heard a record that (ahem) united so many listeners with disparate tastes.

― Naive Teen Idol, Thursday, 24 May 2018 21:21 (five years ago) link

It's Never Been Like That has become one of my most played albums of theirs after initially dismissing it. Alphabetical could be my favourite overall, but it does change all the time.

― kitchen person, Thursday, 24 May 2018 22:06 (five years ago) link

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