Baltimore Sun on Endless Wire

[Brian Cady]

http://tinyurl.com/y52mrn

New CDs have mixed success, but these guys can still rock
The Who and Meat Loaf build on albums of the past 
By Rashod D. Ollison
Pop Music Critic
Originally published October 31, 2006

Years ago, both acts brought a campy theatricality to rock. In 1969, the Who stretched the genre's possibilities with Tommy, the celebrated but flawed "rock opera." Eight years later, Meat Loaf used a similar template for Bat Out of Hell, suffusing his bombastic mini-epics with kitsch and a winking sense of humor. 

Now, well into the iPod age when rock generally is more streamlined and hype supplants craft, the Who and Meat Loaf want to be grand again on their respective new releases: Endless Wire and Bat Out of Hell III: The Monster Is Loose. On both albums, which land in stores today, the legendary pop-rock acts recast old musical ideas with mixed results. 

Endless Wire is the Who's long-belated follow-up to 1982's It's Hard. In that time, the members of the precedent-setting British band have put out solo albums, dabbled in acting and reunited repeatedly. (The Who's spirited set was the highlight at last month's Virgin Festival at Pimlico Race Course.) Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey are the only surviving members of the original lineup. (Drummer Keith Moon died in 1978, and bassist John Entwistle died four years ago.) On the new CD, the two are augmented by drummer Zak Starkey (Ringo Starr's son), guitarist Simon Townshend (Pete's younger brother) and bassist Pino Palladino.

This time out, the lyrics center on religion and music - two topics Pete Townshend, the group's visionary, loves to explore. The music flows in and out of folkish motifs, floating synth-based arrangements and searing arena rock. Daltrey's vocals, though weathered these days, are still powerful - adding character to Townshend's sometimes acidic lyrics. The more interesting songs appear in the album's first half, namely "A Man in a Purple Dress," a flaming arrow at Catholic priests, and "Mike Post Theme," a revelatory look at aging.

It doesn't really matter that the 21 songs on Endless Wire fail to cohere. And who cares whether the mini-opera during the CD's second half rambles and stumbles (much like Tommy did but without the affecting energy)? Above making a cohesive album, the men of the Who want to show that they're still relevant, that after all these years they can still jam. Here and there, Endless Wire proves they can, but with more frills than thrills. 
 
-Brian in Atlanta
The Who This Month!
http://www.thewhothismonth.com


 
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