Ian Anderson to release sequel to TAAB, April 2012

Wow...a late career hit! Who would have guessed?

 

Played the CD this morning - only my second complete listening of this album - and I liked it a little bit more ... but I still don't think it's great or, for that matter, distinctive enough to warrant the THICK AS A BRICK title designation.

 

I haven't heard the album yet, although I plan on ordering it soon from Amazon. I wonder if reaction would be more positive if it wasn't entitled Thick as a Brick II. Add to that the fact that Martin Barre is apparently no longer a member of Jethro Tull and I can see why the reviews have mostly been lukewarm to pleasantly surprised but very few seem to think it's all that great.

 

Jethro Tull is on hiatus. This is an Ian Anderson solo album.

 

Is the hi-rez stereo mix on the dvd much better than the redbook cd version?

 

so what ?

some people are bothered by the fact it's named TAAB
some others because Martin Barre is not part of it ...

but for the christ sake ... if you do a blind test ( u dont know TAAB and u dont know Martin Barre ... ) how is TAAB 2 ?
not so bad. even pretty good.

i dont care it's a solo or whatever... it's good music.
i dont care it's named TAAB2... it 's a good job.

 

i have seen recently an "interview" of IA where u see him beside an empty chair ...
he is making the questions - on his chair -
he is making the answers - he goes on the empty chair.

he has a pretty good sense of humour, is able to see himself in a rather detached way.
he is - very- clever and i think he considered TAAB2 as an excellent idea and opportunity to get fun ... and certainly money also.
there is an excellent DVD named "nothing is easy" and it helps greatly to understand IA as a man.
it's worth the journey, believe me.

 

Like someone else said if Ian hadn`t called it TAAB2 then we wouldn`t be making comparisons. I think he was just trying to drum up some extra sales with this stunt.

That said, after a couple of spins it is growing on me.

 

If he hadn't set out to write TAAB 2, the album wouldn't exist. The songs (except one that was rewritten) came about specifically because he was writing about Gerald Bostock's future, and the music harks back to old Tull because it's a sequel. So he could have written an album designed as TAAB 2 and then changed its name, but what would be the point in that?

 

I really had zero prejudice going in on this one and after half a dozen listens I must say that I am very excited.

I've read several opinions on Ian's voice of late and I think he has done a fantastic job on this album. Yes there is dialog and yes he quasi-sings aspects of TAAB2.

But I want to take a slightly ambiguous stance here.

Note I am a Jethro Tull fan, not just a lucky consumer.

What a great breath of fresh air to hear a freakin' guitar player FINALLY! I don't mean on a Jethro Tull album, I mean on any rock and roll record period in 2012. Martin Barre should be proud. This guy is obviously paying homage to him but not just in a 'cover band' sort of atmosphere. In fact the musicianship as a whole is wonderful. But back to the guitar. Not since Billy Corgan have I been excited to hear the guitar speak for itself in such a badass, unforgiving way. I have nothing against the ultra-mega techie guitarists in the neo-prog genre but they tend to be too mathematical for my soul. This is music.

Who cares whether it matches anyone's expectations of a sequel to a grail. It's rock and roll. And it does just that. It rocks.

Es ist ser gut Ian. Ser gut.

 

Played the album for a friend tonight and he appreciated the metal influence on the album, especially since it sounded like Iron Maiden in spots.

He was also impressed on how much it sounded like a Tull project.

 

TAAB2 is written as the continuing storyline of Gerald Bostock, hence TAAB2. He's not saying "make these comparisons" at all. You should judge the album on it's old merits and stop dragging it back 40 years and comparing it to the first album. You could do that with any band and still come up with the same complaints.

 

I just listened to the 5.1, DTS, and Dolby versions. I do not know what to think? Thick as a brick is prob the one of the top 20 Rock records of all time. This album does not even come close. In regards to the punchy Bass, it is way overblown, and you cant distinguish between the bass guitar and the Foot drum? DTS is almost unlistenable. The Dolby is a little tamer. This is very strange coming from a mix by SW who usually lays off the bottom end. When Ian uses (it sounds like a mega phone), it sounds like absolute noise when mixed with the Distorted guitar. It is a shame that this DVD was not released in a Hi Rez format. I think it would have added more depth to the and air to the overall mix.

 

Ian Anderson Plugs Sequel

Ian Anderson on BBC giving insight to the re-visit http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-17663159

 

Regarding 5.1
(Punchy Bass, it is way overblown, muddy sound.) It started like this for me. I ran an auto speaker calibration on my receiver, then adjusted slightly to my taste. Now it's very clear. Through 3 players HDMI all is well. The DD does sound tamer. Through a Pioneer 563 analog outs the bass is muddy with dts.


auto set-up showed that my bass settings were too low for the centre and rear speakers. Plus my sub was way too loud. Adjusting with this album (5.1) in mind has helped my overall sound, thanks Steven Wilson. It's difficult to go back to stereo after this great 5.1 mix. There's enough surprises in the 5.1 that I would not want to be the spoiler for those that will eventually stumble there.

 

You should not have to re-calibrate your surround system to make this CD listenable? SW"s version of Aqualung sounds Incredible as well as all his other albums. My system has been calibrated using the Anthem ARC room setup system, and it is about as good as as gets for my listening area.

 

Agree.

If a system is bass hot this is going to sound muddy. I have not listened to the CD, referring only to DVD 5.1. Neutral bass is a must.

 

I don't understand any talk about how this is a 'continuation' of TAAB. The original TAAB was a poem supposedly written by a 10 year old boy. TAAB2 is a story about that poem's fictitious author and a 'what-if' as to what happened to that author throughout his life.

If this is considered a 'continuation/sequel', I guess a biography of J.K. Rowling would be a 'continuation' of Harry Potter.

I like TAAB2 quite a bit, don't love it, but it is a completely different concept than the original TAAB. Judging it relative to (what I consider to be) the best prog album of all-time really can't do it justice.

 

Big fan of the original TAAB. When I heard a TAAB 2 was coming out, I was skeptical that it could live up to the original, but I was still curious. The positive reviews made me even more curious.

I haven't heard a bit of music from this new album, simply because I keep forgetting to sample it online whenever I have the opportunity to do so. However, I've ordered the CD/DVD from Amazon simply because it apparently has a great sounding 5.1 mix. Absent that, I don't think I'd have bothered to even give it a try.

Not sure what that says about me, but it does suggest that giving it the 5.1 treatment is going to sell more copies. Or at least one more copy.

 

I had a brief review earlier in this thread on the CD. It is bloated and bass heavy to me and I agree with the reviewer above about the bass drum and bass guitar........and my system is not bass hot either. Way to up front in the mix for me.

 

I listened to the DVD Stereo, 24/48. It sounded real good on my system. I thought the eq and balance was very good. Everything came out in the mix.

I do use room treatment...

 

This album really is growing on me, I really think this is Ian's/Tull's best album since War Child. The 5.1 mix really highlights a lot of the album.

 

Jethro Tull returns to ‘70s style
By Brendon Field
Campus Correspondent
Published: Thursday, April 12, 2012
Updated: Wednesday, April 11, 2012
http://www.dailycampus.com/focus/jethro-tull-returns-to-70s-style-1.2845752#.T4a-_dXa_d4
In 1972, British rock group Jethro Tull released “Thick as a Brick.” It went on to be one of the most acclaimed albums and is now considered one of the best in the history of progressive rock. Forty years later, Jethro Tull front man Ian Anderson has released Thick as a Brick 2.”

The album is a return to the progressive style embodied by Jethro Tull throughout the 1970s. It utilizes an eclectic combination of instruments, from the rock essentials to organ, saxophone and even accordion. The songs vary from electric instrumental to acoustic ballad to spoken poetry, and several combinations of the three. The mix of styles balance well and the transitions, while occasionally abrupt, give the music a distinct and interesting flavor.

Unlike the original “Thick as a Brick,” the new album is not one song that goes for 45 minutes. But it acts as a sequel in that the songs tell the story of Gerald Bostock, the character created in the first album. Each song focuses on a different part of his life in the past 40 years. The album as a whole shows how menial events can affects one’s outlook on life. This message is carried through Anderson’s always spectacular lyrical work. His words here are less cryptic than they usually are, but they’re still deep, poetic and original.

He uses the songs as a whole to act as metaphors and symbols, and they combine to tell an interesting and thought provoking story. There’s still a fair share of lines like “All bread and butter and jam for his tea” and “No more empty towers of this unholy Babylon.” But strange dialect has always been a feature of Jethro Tull, and quite frankly, their music doesn’t sound right without it.

A lot has changed since 1972, most notably Anderson’s voice. Due to several vocal cord injuries, his singing voice is much higher pitched, nasally and has a limited range. It’s certainly a downgrade from what it used to be and he does go beyond his limits in places. But it’s tolerable and is appropriate because the album is a story, his voice has that of an old narrator. He’s also the only personnel to have also appeared on the 1972 album. While “Thick as a Brick 2” is under his name, it was made using the same of group of people that have called themselves “Jethro Tull” for the last several years; with the sole exception of guitarist Florian Ophale replacing long time member Martin Barre. While I’m an enormous fan of Barre’s work, it’s Ophale’s that makes the album. His work has a lot energy, matches the style perfectly and goes very well with Anderson’s best flute work since “Songs from the Wood.” The two have several instrumental duets, and not one of them is less than amazing.

While technically a sequel to “Thick as a Brick,” “Thick as a Brick 2” much closer resembles “A Passion Play,” Jethro Tull’s 1973 album. Unfortunately, it also has some of the same problems as “A Passion Play.” Occasionally the lyrical syntax doesn’t match the music, and some of the acoustic sections sound a little thin. But it also fixes much of what “A Passion Play” did wrong. It doesn’t push its progressive tone to the point of pretentiousness, and the narrative flows much smoother.

Is “Thick as a Brick 2” as good as its 1972 predecessor? No, then again, few things are. But it does deliver complex and well executed music in a fashion that we just don’t see enough of today. This is easily Anderson’s best work in 20 years and for any progressive rock fan, “Thick as a Brick 2” will certainly satisfy.



Brick hits road
http://www.derbyshiretimes.co.uk/lifestyle/music/brick-hits-road-1-4442614

 

Nice review and I agree with it. Love the 5.1 mix, job well done Steven

 

G'day,

Got the TAAB2 CD yesterday. No lyrics in the booklet (pretty shabby IMHO). Looked on the stcleve.com website but I could not find any lyrics there, either. And a quick poke around j-tull.com came up empty as well.

Am I not looking hard enough, or in some other obvious place, or are the lyrics only included in the CD/DVD edition?

--Geoff