This is and Enhanced CD, which contains both regular tracks and multimedia computer files.
The title of the Weakerthans' third full-length LP is appropriate, because even if it's not meant to, Reconstruction Site is a great way to describe the most defined document yet of singer, principal songwriter, and guitarist John Samson's trajectory from the punk rock of Propagandhi to the Weakerthans' quietly determined indie pop. While his former group was as concerned with social change as it was with a lockstep drum beat, Samson's recent work has traded power-chord fury for the slow-burning -- but no less hot -- embers of fully realized, deceptively simple pop/rock that brings the songwriter's flair for metaphor to stage front. Like the Mountain Goats' John Darnielle, whose intelligence and wit seep into every corner of his work, the odd, sometimes grandiose song titles of Reconstruction Site are headings for lyrics that revisit pet Samson topics -- the beauty/hell of life in Winnipeg, destructive/confusing personal relationships, and personal ethics as a reaction to the welfare state. The latter, detailed in "Our Retired Explore (Dines With Michel Foucault in Paris, 1961)," is some heady stuff, to be sure. But Samson just as easily personifies a pussycat in "Plea from a Cat Named Virtue," where his tabby takes him to task for "sleeping as much as I do." Though Virtue is afraid of Samson's sister's basset hound, he encourages his owner to stop "repeating the self-defeating lies you've been repeating since the day you brought me home." Musically, Reconstruction Site has more in common with literate indie types like Clem Snide or even the mature, clear-eyed work of Michael Penn. The dissonant chords of punk and hardcore have been replaced by plucked guitars with a country feel ("[Manifest]," and "Time's Arrows"); the harmony-laded "Benediction" even employs a full-on pedal steel guitar. The acoustic "One Great City!" is the album's most lyrically acidic track; an Edward Hopper-esque study of bitter characters in the city where Samson makes his home, for better or worse: it reveals the singer's own love-hate relationship with his country and city. ~ Johnny Loftus
Sonically located in the finest tradition of Punk, The Weakerthans walk an archipelago of influences from rock to folk to alt-country and beyond, led by lyrics tutored in the best of contemporary literature and progressive politics. 14 tracks packaged in a digipak. Includes the music video for the track 'Our Retired Explorer' & other bonus CD-ROM content. Epitaph. 2003.
Additional personnel includes: Sarah Harmer (vocals).
Recorded at Chemical Sound, Toronto, Canada.
The Weakerthans: John K. Samson (vocals, guitar); Stephen Carroll (guitar, lap steel guitar, pedal steel guitar, piano, keyboards, background vocals); Jason Tait (vibraphone, glockenspiel, keyboards, drums, percussion); John P. Sutton (bass, background vocals).
Personnel: Steve Carroll (vocals, guitar, lap steel guitar, piano, keyboards); John K. Samson (vocals, guitar); John Sutton (vocals); Christine Fellows (piano); Jason Tait (keyboards, vibraphone, glockenspiel, drums, percussion).
Audio Mixer: Adam Kasper.
Recording information: Chemical Sound, Toronto, Ontario, Canada (01/2003-03/2003).
Authors: James Agee; Martin Amis; John Berger .
Illustrator: Marcel Dzama.Q (2/04, p.106) - 3 stars out of 5 - "Good things are the strong melodies, subtle right-on politics and plenty of musical light and shade..." Alternative Press (9/03, p.100) - 4 out of 5 - "...The Weakerthans three-way marriage of folk-rock-punk thrives. The hooks are smarter and as catchy as monkey pox; the sonic embellishments keen. May this reconstruction be ongoing..."
Superb I really liked it. A great CD. Submitted by a reviewer (Basingstoke UK) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
Best of 2003 The first track is less than 2 minutes long, unless you go back and replay it a dozen times immediately after hearing it. Once you get past the brilliance of this first pop gem you will find a dense album filled w/ poetry laced perfection. Samson and co. continue to write songs that challenge and delight all at the same time and this album fully realizes what they are capable of.
Submitted by jbarkley (Buffalo, NY) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
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