Blued

More evidence that it makes little sense to judge a record by its insert. See, with some fairly dark imagery, I expected My Old Friend no. 58 to fit into the gothic/industrial realm. Oh how wrong I was. Rather, this CD focuses solely on bringing the rock and the roll into your home. Before venturing further, I just wish to point out that Blued are yet another great band from my beloved home of Texas. This may not seem too important, but it is worth noting the quantity of fantastic music pouring out of Austin and the rest of the state. If you like these guys, and I bet you will, then I highly recommend seeking out more Texan rock.<br><br>Let's move on to the record. Opener "To Receive" features the excellent guitar interplay that forms the heart of My Old Friend no. 58. These guys have obviously put a serious amount of thought into creating melodies that intersect without becoming redundant. The vocals are great, occasionally sounding like one Mr. Eddie Vedder. Say what you want about Pearl Jam (I certainly have), but you gotta love singers that can actually sing. "Melk (the Jawbreak)" once again showcases Blued's penchant for six-stringed brilliance. The guitarists use effects perfectly for as little as two bars to add texture and depth to the melodies in a way that evokes Bends-era Radiohead. The vocals no longer sound like Eddie, instead taking on their own unique, highly enjoyable style. <br><br>The rest of the record follow suit while managing to remain varied and interesting. "Anonymous Arms" ends with some buzzing and twirling electronics that wouldn't sound out of place on a Bjork track. "Break Your Spirit" combines palm muted power chords and some excellent stop-start breaks while the rhythm section revolves around a stuttering beat that keeps things from going stale. I also quite like the time signature change that occurs during the chorus. The bass really comes to the forefront on "Rocker Gone Soft" with a simple counter melody that reminds me of Death Cab for Cutie. Only "Emptied Out" feels slightly off, something that may or not stem from its short length (1:30). The weird talking track at the end is probably best ignored.<br><br>All in all, My Old Friend no. 58 delivers some great tunes that will sound good coming from your headphones or your car stereo. In fact, I can see this getting heavy rotation when I drive back home from college. If you like good, clean rock, go to Blued webpage and pick this record up. - Delusions of Adequacy

Blued (Austin, TX) @ El Mocambo (Downstairs)<br>June 8, 2000<br>Reporter: Rob Kingston<br>Three guitars, a bass player, drums and a shitload of volume combine to deliver what can be pegged as '90s alt rock.<br><br>Band achieves required skills and knowledge. Meets rock 'n' roll standard<br>World Domination Status: Progressing with some difficulty towards world domination<br><br>Reporter’s comment: Blued is as solid as they get when it comes to grunge rock. Just don't expect to be blown away to the point where their album will be in in heavy rotation from your collection.<br>Strengths: It doesn't get much more straightforward than this. They get up on stage, play a couple of songs, tune a little and make a couple of jokes about the town they're in, then play a couple more songs. That's what it's all about, though - isn't it? Making sure the audience doesn't know they aren't playing music while they try to fix some sort of problem. Blued does it quite well. Someone once said, "As long as we don't embarrass ourselves, we'll do okay." Well, Blued is about as far away from embarrassing themselves as any band you'll find.... - Chartattck