Flowers For Juno – Sadchester

Flowers For Juno – Sadchester – Single Review

FOOLS!

Ha!  That’s right!  Here at the tail end of summer, which is typically our slowest time of the year, EVERY single year…Flowers For Juno is appearing back-to-back in review due to what we know is a lack of content and submissions, but to anyone just looking in and peeking at our website, it’s gonna make them look like the THIRSTIEST band on Earth, so desperately seeking my approval.  Well done lads – you’ve earned it – you recorded some more songs, and now you’re up on some rando’s website again!  Yayyyyyyyyy!

Can you believe that most folks out there would never dream of biting the hand that feeds them?

Me?  I am fully content to gnaw on that motherfucker.  When it’s appropriate, of course.  I’m principled.

I just wish I had a little better news for Flowers For Juno this time around.  Rapid production is bound to catch up with even the best of the best though, and when you’re constantly getting compared to yourself without any breathing space or daylight in between…what can I say – shit simply gets harder.  That’s not me saying I don’t like “Sadchester” so much as me saying it doesn’t quite reach that crucial groundbreaking status you’re always hoping to find when you push play on a band or artist you really like.  It’s a good song.  Does it warrant being a single?  Probably not.  Is it still better than most of the music that comes my way?  Probably so.  Do I want more outta FFJ than just hearing Benjó James go through the motions and create a song that he could have written between falling outta bed and hitting the goddamn floor below?  Of course I do.  I’d be foolish not to say that, wouldn’t I?  Again – doesn’t mean I don’t like it…but it does suggest that I KNOW for a FACT that this band still has a gear that its yet to tap into…and so yeah, it’s my job to poke and prod until Flowers For Juno stops making lateral moves and starts pushing their story forward again in tangible ways we can’t deny.  Like many of you fans out there, I’m sure we’re all happy to get MORE of a sound we love…like, if this was the only thing that FFJ ever did and kept on repeating this method of songwriting for the rest of time, don’t get it twisted – I’m STILL going to listen, even if I do still want MORE outta James.  The signature sound at the core of the Flowers For Juno recipe is always going to be enticing to me, even in instances where it doesn’t come out quite as strong as the best tunes you’ll find in the catalog.  I still dig what I hear in “Sadchester,” even if it feels like a bit of a watered down version of what this project is capable of at their very best.  Like I was saying, FFJ firing off at even 10% of their own capacity…I mean…there’s still an incredible chance that I’d rather listen to that than most of the stuff that comes my way.  So…they’ve got that going in their favor, which is good…but…wait…HOLY HELL – did they just fucking fade this track out two thirds into it?  C’mon man…what are we doing here.  We all know there is only ONE acceptable time for a fade in music, and it’s when you’re recording from a CD to a cassette, using your trusty Bic pen to get the job done with precision…other than that, there is literally no time where this is an acceptable idea.  In the middle of a song though?  Oooo that’s all-time unacceptable, yes indeed, and gets my blood a-boilin’ right here in my skin.  Umm…yeah…I mean…look…”Sadchester” is alright, it really is…I mean that…by its literal definition.  I’m not going to rant and rave about this song, because that’s not what we’ve got here…it’s an alright tune.  I’m saving on stationery, because I ain’t writing home about this one, despite the fact that I’m quite likely still going to turn it up on my own damn time.  I guess what I’m saying is, I’m not going to sit here and say that this song would be the tits for everyone, because I don’t think it will be, at least by comparison to their own damn catalog.  “Sadchester” is another decent entry in that regard, and feels a little bit like the band is treading water for the moment rather than pushing the boundaries like they bloody well should be, always and forever.

“Marisa.wav” would probably be my pick for best of the three songs on this single, and I already knew this track from the last review I did earlier this week.  Wanna hear about it?  Cool – click here and get your fill of all the things I had to say about it, where I point out that it’s not the best track in that set.  “Marisa.wav” gets its revenge here on this new single from FFJ…it’s quite likely the strongest cut here.

Then we’ve got “For Fuzz Sake,” which if I’m not mistaken, is merely an extended, instrumental derivative of what we heard on “Sadchester,” and I ain’t all that sure that’s gonna cut it for me, or for anyone else when it comes right down to it.  Do I like it better than “Sadchester?”  Fuck me…is this what it’s come to?  I guess?  I don’t want anyone to get that twisted and think that I’m advocating on behalf of “For Fuzz Sake” – it’s existence is practically a C-hair short of being an easy, somewhat lazy kind of option for song creation…and yes, I do hold Benjó to a higher standard than what I’m hearing on this particular single.  If you wanna blame ME for that, that’s fine…I’ve got broad shoulders and every critic should be willing to play the role of the villain when it’s called for…but I like to think this is me telling FFJ that they’re capable of a lot more than this.  The Sadchester single feels a bit rushed based on the strengths of its content…but what I’d say is ultimately perplexing to me, is how Benjó and I would be hearing it so differently.  If we’ve both got two functional ears, which I’m presuming we do, then like…well…he knows that what he’s got here is just OK in comparison to the brilliance he’s capable of, right?  So again…no need for a review mate – you know I’m gonna say what you already know and hit you with both barrels when I’m doin’ it, which I’ve essentially done here.  If we’re talking about YOU, as in the masses & all that…and we’re like, presuming you’ve NEVER heard another song that Flowers For Juno has put out there…then it’s “Marisa.wav,” “Sadchester,” and “For Fuzz Sake” you’ll respond to, in that order.  If you ARE familiar with the band and you KNOW what James and his crew are capable of, then to me, it’s easily “Marisa.wav,” “For Fuzz Sake,” and “Sadchester” in the order of what’s worth listening to.  I would inherently question the value of any single, EP, or record that has its best song coming from the recording you just heard prior…so like…FFS FFJ…it’s not about just having your name in print again so much as the goals should really be to create music that blows our fucking minds, which we all know you can do when you’re at your focused best.  I like the length of “For Fuzz Sake” and the way that FFJ dares to defy convention by basically making this unreachable for the average everyday listeners out there with its wild mix of texture and distortion…it’s by no means an easy sell to the normals, but if you’re an audiophile like I am, there’s still something interesting to listen to here at the core of this song, and I suspect that’ll always be the case when it comes to this particular band.  That isn’t me letting Flowers For Juno off the hook – I still want a whole lot more than I’m getting here – but I will readily admit that “For Fuzz Sake” scratches the itch when it comes to mesmerizing vibes and unique ideas, and the execution you’ll find in all three songs is still a huge plus if we’re talking about FFJ’s commitment to production and doing things differently from everyone else, even if not so much itself at the very same time.  It ain’t bad by any stretch of the imagination, but it ain’t what I’d say represents them at their greatest either…FFJ has more in the tank than this.

Find out more about Flowers For Juno at their official page at Facebook here:  https://www.facebook.com/flowersforjuno

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