If there exists a fountain of success, then the Barenaked Ladies has found it. Step one: Gather a fan base by making dancy pop-rock songs out of catchy one-liners no one can get out of their head. Step Two: Take the same sound and finally say something with your lyrics.
Noted for their live performances, the band returns strong and a bit more serious in their fifth studio album Maroon. They have released what is quite possibly the first worthwhile pop album in months.
Producer Don Was assisted the creative genius of the band in the production of Maroon. As a result, the album’s success will undoubtedly be at least partially credited to him. The Barenaked Ladies are lucky to have Was on board.
The album opens with a distinctive pop feel. But when Steven Page erupts on vocals, the listener begins to wonder if “Too Little Too Late” is just another crazy song about “Chinese chicken” or life as a millionaire. As the catch phrase and the song’s title suggest, it’s time for change. The boys choose a great introduction to an album with an introspective theme.
The next track, “Never Do Anything,” incorporates a space-explorer feel into a gentle, rhythmic rock. BNL break free of the clich?s commonly used to describe life, love, relationships and other such stuff. Lyrics such as “Let’s play tic-tac-toe/ I’ll play
X, you can be the O” show how the band uses the ordinary to deliver a complex idea.
The current single, “Pinch Me,” turns up as the third track on the album. “This song is about this bored guy,” says Page. “He’s by himself in this world; he doesn’t know what he’s doing. He can dream about big ambitions but he’s just living his life sleepwalking.” Radio stations across the nation have unknowingly played a philosophy lesson on their airwaves.
The fourth track, “Go Home,” follows a rock beat familiar to the BNL classic “Brian Wilson.” The song offers decent relationship advice hidden in a fun, pop sound. Lyrics such as “If you need her/ you should be there/ Go Home” and the clever melody will draw smiles to the listener’s face. The album presses on to the fifth tack “Falling For The First Time” which features Ed Robertson on lead vocals.
The next track swings into the familiarity of a jazz ballad accompanied by a soft piano, previously contrasted by electric organs and synthesizers. The song captures the progression of a relationship from first date to marriage thoughts and, finally, the I-don’t-even-want-to-know-you breakup. But, of course, the BNL attack this subject with a game of Scrabble.
The seventh track, “Sell, Sell, Sell,” is definitely one to skip despite a decent political commentary through song. In “The Humour Of The Situation” the pop-rock drive returns in a song that could shortly be seen on Broadway as a show-stopper in a musical.
The album concludes with a serious note. While “Baby Seat” and “Off the Hook” stay away from the graphic allegories of ”Helicopters” and “Tonight Is The Night I Fell Asleep At The Wheel.” They still address more adult issues. Perhaps the Barenaked Ladies have decided to grow up. The band can only hope that Maroon will do as well as 1998’s Stunt. It looks as if they’ll no longer be singing “if I had a million dollars.” B+
