Maroon (Barenaked Ladies)

Immature? Cheeky? Derivative? Maybe, but when I listen to Maroon, all I hear is a marvelous pop album. It's got a lot of fuzzy guitar hooks and catchy choruses and clever lyrics. The vocals all but dare you not to sing along, and the melodies are irresistible. Irresistible! The `Ladies have a knack for songwriting that's both humorous and resonant. It's not brilliant, mind you, but it's still a lot of fun. The big single was "Pinch Me," which (thank goodness) was absolutely ubiquitous on your local pop radio station back in 2000. It's a laid-back masterpiece, a song that's by turns funny, soothing, catchy, and vulnerable. "Falling For The First Time" and "Too Little Too Late" (also released as singles) are similarly catchy. The handclap-stuffed chorus of the latter is especially wonderful. And then there's "Never Do Anything," a classic ode to a life spent doing nothing. "Humor Of The Situation" totally rocks out, and "Off The Hook" shows off just how smart this band could be. "Tonight... Read more

God do I love this album, for the fun, the poignancy and sheer variety. Pinch Me is fantastic, how it swings and catches you with that hook, and it's crazy lyrics and their unique approach to depression, and yet its such an accurate one. Conventioneers is heartbreaking about being so in love and then how it sours. Sell, Sell, Sell sells itself on a great story of acting and selling out, and Baby Seat just flows. I love Tonight is the Night I Fell Asleep at the Wheel, which is weird because it sounds a bit like carnival music (to me) but he's singing about the car flipping over and the driver dying (all along singing 'you were the last thing on my mind,' love the irony!), and that hidden track Hidden Sun, which bobs along in a melancholy yet hopeful manner. If I'm down in the dumps I put this album on and the songs let me indulge my feelings a bit and pull me out of the black just by feeling that there are souls out there who can put how I feel into song and lyric. I can't judge this ex... Read more

This may be the least diverse album that BNL has released to date, but that probably is not a bad quality to have considering how broad a stroke they can sometimes paint. This album is chock full of hits and features many great tunes. I especially like Too Little Too Late, Never Do Anything, Pinch Me, Go Home, Falling for the First Time, Sell, Sell, Sell, Humor of the Situation, Off the Hook and Helicopters. Those are all first rate, 5-star songs in my opinion, and for those scoring at home, that also includes the first 5 songs on the album in succession. The rest of the album is just dandy as well, the only remaining song I have rated below a 4 is Baby Seat, which I have at a 3. Sell, Sell, Sell and Helicopters seem infinitely more relevant today than when this CD was released, which is quite sad. I'm pleased to report that the Ladies haven't backed away from its subtle mocking of the despicable Bush regime in later albums; if anything, it's increased, and possibly become even more su... Read more

The first five tracks on this album are incredible. I can't think of a more rocking stretch on any other BNL album. The opening electric riff from "Too Little Too Late" sets the pace. The smart alecky "Never Do Anything" follows up with great lines like "I could make mint/Fill my pockets with more than lint/I'll give you a hint/It involves the internet". I absolutely love "Pinch Me", a song about not wanting to grow up (replete with dopey, but perfect, "under where?" joke). Then you have the jangly, lilting "Go Home" followed by "Falling For the First Time". Then the album slows down with "Conventioneers". This isn't a bad thing, though because all the remaining tracks are good. They just work on a different - and less immediately gratifying - level. You have the haunting "Helicopters" and the carnival morbidity of "Tonight is the Night I Fell Asleep at the Wheel". This is a splendid album. If you are trying to figure out which BNL album to buy first, get Stunt... Read more

It was at the start of the new Millenium, when Barenaked Ladies punched out another classic rock album. The Candian rock band was stronger than ever. Their musical knowledge and performance just shines on MAROON. The musicians display their great sense of time to a slight swing feel and they have a great sense of how to create harmony and melody with keyboards. The guitars, bass, strings, and percussion are there as well, but they do not stand out as much as the keyboards do. The lyrics to MAROON are in themselves incredibly interesting. Most of them are typical to the humor of Barenaked Ladies, but others start to become political. The lines to "Sell Sell Sell" are especially interesting because they make reference to Iraq and the lyricist's opion about the country. Three years after this record's release, the lyricist discovered how wrong the lines are about the region. Another track to give special attention to is "Helicopters". Hearing this song in our present day, makes the listen... Read more

this bad is noise

Why does a band have to retain it's initial qualities to keep the respect of their fans? It seems as if "Maroon" disappointed a lot of BNL fans out there, but I, for one, have never been more impressed. For the first time in a long time, "Maroon" has exhibited the tremendous capabilities of Steven Page and Co. as songwriters and musicians. "Sell Sell Sell" plays like a "Evita"-like show production with a tango- tinged melody and a men's chorus, but it manages to be tongue-in-cheek as it pokes fun at the film industry. Infectious and upbeat songs like "Falling For The First Time" and "Humour Of The Situation" explore the beginning and the end of relationships without pretentiousness or melodrama. When Steven Page sings lyrics like "A world that loves its irony must hate the protest singer" in "Helicopters", a song about touring in war torn, delapitated countries and the guilt and sadness it instills, it's a sure sign of maturity. So is "Off The Hook", a song of a cheating husband and th... Read more

The only album I gave 5 stars in the last year was David Gray’s “White Ladder”. But this one is pretty close. I love the songwriting and melodies, and fun to rock to.

Not up to par with what they're capable of. A bit of a departure from what you'd expect, but that's not a bad thing.. the songs are more sober, the lyric progressions matured.. but it's just a little less fun than one would expect from the Ladies. Still.. it's a whole lot better than the other crap that's out there.

Like everyone has been saying, this CD may be more serious than the last one (Stunt), but it is just as good. The lyrics are funny and true and the music to go along is very catchy. If you love to sing and dance to your CDs like I do, this one is a great buy!