The Analysis: Ted Leo and the Pharmacists

Ted Leo and the Pharmacists- Living with the Living

i thought i would throw in my two cents worth today about a new album that is flowing through my ear drums this week. Punk songster Ted Leo is a man that i have grown to love with honest adorement (if that's a word) over the past couple of years. not having much exposure to his music before 2004's Shake the Streets i soon began to absorb all of his music including Hearts of Oak and The Tyranny of Distance. Well his new album is longer, more complicated, and challenging than all of the past.

what i love about Ted Leo is the fact that he has the ability to put the melody of the song in the verse and not in the chorus. on songs such as "Who Do You Love", "C.I.A.", "A Bottle of Buckie" he places the hook right before the chorus which can be so bizarre to some people who are used to the Verse-Chorus-Verse-Chorus mentality. plus the melody is never a simple hit you in the face type of sound but more a gradual realization that by changing the inflection in his voice you hear something different. Leo is really more a singer/songwriter than a punk musician. But with his socially conscious lyrics and lightning fast solos he is one of the most interesting men in music.

"C.I.A" and "Bomb. Repeat. Bomb." are two cooly anti-war/government tracks. the thing with Leo is that his lyrics may be politically motivated but they don't sound preachy. "Bomb" is a frenatic punk anthem that doesn't let up for a second as he rips through the chords faster than any drum stick while shouting "Bomb. Repeat. Bomb."

Yet, the album can drag at times and feel a tad unsettled. Some of the guitar hooks blend around the mid tracks and you forget each glorious melody until you listen again and again to get the full understanding. the album itself feels unsettled with only a handful of tracks feeling comfortable and gooy. but i can't blame Ted for this feeling because listening to each track you hear the pleading in his voice for change in a lost country. as a musician he is smarter and more talented than most singers working today. yet, know one but the inclusive set realize this guys power.

so my advice is buy Shake the Streets first and come to love this. then buy this album because until you appreciate his past work can you love this new work.

keep the melody flowing.