THE FIERY FURNACES
Gallowsbird's Bark (Rough Trade)
Reviewed by Erick Mertz

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I wrote a review of a Fiery Furnaces single a couple of months ago and it was returned by an editor, rejected for being too harshly penned. With no real reason to change my angle on the album, I scrapped the idea of writing about the band altogether, chalking it up to "artistic divergence" or the classic spin of "irreconcilable differences."

I mean, if it could break up the Beatles, it surely could prevent me from writing about this band.

Now Rough Trade has re-sent the single and packaged it with the full length album for Gallowsbird's Park, their newest full length release. A couple of months older and a couple of months more reasonable, I still can't find much to say about this group. Perhaps I wrote my harsh review at a time of dire personal weakness. There are times when even my favorite arts and literatures seem sick and pale and I can't find anything enjoyable or even valid about them. I am a moody and temperamental cuss and I live with that everyday.

But I put on the new Fiery Furnaces - both the single and the album as packaged - and still didn't like them very much. I won't say they should go to Clown College as I did before, but I will say that there are better buys for your fifteen hard earned dollars and you'd better recognize that. The American dollar is weakening by the day, and purchasing this record will only become a bigger and bigger gaffe as the currency devalues. Be wise and buy anything other than this album.

Although I've yet to hear everything, anything must be superior to this.

© 2003 - Erick Mertz