Last week I wrote about the comebacks of 2008, artists who I didn’t expect much from surprising me with a really solid effort, or in some cases, a game-changing release. Today I’m looking at the other side of the coin – the five biggest disappointments of 2008..
The Pretenders: Break Up The Concrete
It’s not a bad album, per se, but it’s really a Chrissy album, in’nit? There are some sprightly moments in “Don’t Cut Your Hair” and “Boots of Chinese Plastic”, but they sound like retreads from the first post-mortem Pretenders bands. Other parts could be stabs at alt-country or torch song collections. There’s no cohesion, no sound, no band identity – so why use the legendary moniker? After being thrilled that Martin Chambers had finally been brought back to the fold last time around – he’s only one of the ten best rock drummers ever – I am even more pissed off that he’s once again been relegated to…well, what do you call someone who is no longer a “pretender”, the real deal? I’m glad Chrissie is still making music, but this is like Mick or Keith calling their solo work Stones albums.
