Latest Aerosmith falls short of usual standards
By MARY SPEARS
Scene Music Critic
An old issue of "Rolling Stone" once called Aerosmith's work "comic book sexcapades set to song." Listeners shouldn't expect anything different from the band's latest release, Just Push Play. No deep lyrics or introspective thought here — Aerosmith merely wants to make its fans sing along, and feel a little dirty about doing so.
Of course, this is a welcome respite from Aerosmith's brief foray into power balladry with the absurdly bad "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" — compare early Aerosmith work to this song and just try not to be insulted. The original Bad Boys of Boston work best when they're at their dirtiest (think "Lord of the Thighs" and "F.I.N.E" here, not "Dream On").
The problem with Aerosmith is, where does one start a criticism of one of rock's most prolific band's first album in four years?
The album begins with "Beyond Beautiful," a song that manages to remain strong despite its overly apparent single potential. It also segues neatly into the title track, "Just Push Play." Now this is more like it. The song kicks off with one of those delightful Steven Tyler nonsense scats, which continues throughout the entire song. It's enough to make even a non-fan hum along. Hopefully, this song will never see release as a single — it'd be a shame for people to ever get sick of it. There is hope in the fact that the lyrics to it are peppered with enough "FNA"s to discourage all but the most dedicated of deejays from actually playing it on the air.
Next, the album treats you to its first single, "Jaded," a song with which U-93 has made everyone within a 50-mile radius intimately familiar. While no one can say that "Jaded" isn't a decent song, it has nothing to really make it stand out as a stellar example of the songwriting craft. But you can sing along to it, and it won't leave fans wishing to blow their brains out if by chance it should get stuck in their head.
"Fly Away from Here," the next song, was not written by a single person in the band, and it shows. This ballad recalls "Hole in My Soul" from Nine Lives, but without the humor. Tyler and his unknown confidant wish to pack their bags and fly away from "here" because life is just too short not to. Deep. Dedicated fans might find merit in this song; most critics haven't. Plus, it's a horrible segue into the next song, an odd but highly likeable rocker called "Trip Hoppin'." Can fifty-year-old men even get away with saying that? Steven Tyler apparently can. It's a gift.
The following track is arguably the best on the album. "Sunshine" is yet another strong, imaginative song with Alice in Wonderland-based lyrics. Tyler refers to such crazy imagery as the "caterpillar trying to cop a plea" and "chasing that rabbit up her body tree." It has a great chorus, and it's a definite mood-lifter. This song can make you smile.
Sadly, the second half of the album doesn't quite measure up to the first, which, despite a few off spots, is still definitely fun. "Under My Skin" and "Luv Lies" are good songs, but nothing worth downloading from Napster. The remaining four tracks are decent at best, although it is fairly interesting to hear Liv Tyler's backup vocals on "Avant Garden" — and nice to see that awful Tylerian pun in the title.
Still, Aerosmith, even at their most mediocre, easily beats out most bands of today. The lyrics on this album are great in a sick sort of way, and the ballads are listenable — for ballads. Plus, it's the perfect type of CD to play while one is, say, driving across the country on the way back from spring break.
Buy Aerosmith's new album, but don't expect the world. Don't even expect the best album this band has ever produced. Just expect a lot of good, dirty, loud fun done the Aerosmith way and done well.
All Scene Stories for Tuesday, March 20, 2001
