WhatzUp

Maroon
Barenaked Ladies
by Doug Driscoll

I have a soft spot for bands with a sense of humor, especially if the members are mostly goofy looking. That in a nutshell is why I like BNL as much as I do. After hearing the live version of ìBrian Wilsonî on the radio, I bought Rock Spectacle. That led to my buying Gordon if for no other reason than to be able to listen to ìBe My Yoko Onoî anytime I wanted to. My incessant playing of the entire BNL catalog around World Headquarters has created a handful of new fans of the band. The only holdouts are my wife who tires of my playing the same CDs over and over (and seems to forget just how much Steely Dan she forced on me until she, finally, got sick of them too) and Lisa (who likes Creed and, therefore, doesnít count).

The other day I apologized to her for playing Maroon for the eleven-thousandth time, explaining that I was reviewing the new CD. It was then that she admitted for the first time that she kinda likes them, too (probably in the same sense that I ìkinda likeî Steely Dan). BNL are, after all, pretty darn inoffensive, even for people who donít delight in their humor.

That said, once this review is done, Maroon is gonna go back on the CD rack and, with Stunt, only come out when I go on a total BNL binge. There are good songs and all, ìSell Sell Sellî being the one that most grabs me. Itís not only got clever lyrics (ìIn terms of Roman numerals / Heís IV league with Roman Polanskiî) but glockenspeils, castanets and circus music. ìTonight Is the Night I Fell Asleep at the Wheel,î is cool, too, even if it is sorta creepy (In all the confusion, thereís something serene / Iím just a posthumous part of the scene / Now Iím floating above looking in / As the radio blares are wheels spin). But thereís something about Maroon thatís just a little too polished for my taste. Maybe itís the influence of Don Was, producer of the gods.

Or maybe, just maybe, itís because Barenaked Ladies are growing up. And that makes me just a little sad.