Liars effectively meshes an eighties' pop feel with more modern song writing, completely thick with electronica and splashes of guitars and piano. Trance-like melodies and soulful, catchy tunes dominate, with many of the tracks lingering and drifting into the next song to give the record a very cohesive, often ethereal feel.
The opening tracks, "Truth" and "Sweet," are absolutely impressive, with gorgeous layered melodies and beautiful lyrics regarding the search for truth in the world. In "Soulbrother," Rundgren openly questions the quality of modern music- "I didn't just roll into town/ there's something missing in the sound/...it may rock it may roll, but tell me whatever happened to the soul?" Though he takes the offensive in a couple socio-political songs, including the rocking and growling Middle Eastern-ish title track, he also tackles self-doubt ("God Said") and over-confidence ("Stoodup"), balancing any of his criticisms of other people by also pointing the finger at himself. Thankfully, even though there are some potentially hot, HOT topics in the record's lyricism, he never lets any of it dominate or overwhelm. It's about the music itself, and the fantastic melodies and stellar production remains the primary draw.
About that stellar production- this is sonically one of the most impressive records I've heard in, oh, ages, or some long space of time. The vocal harmonies are smooth as silk, the various electronic bubblings and croonings are crystal clear and sumptuous. Rundgren's talent for great production is in full force here.
Perhaps the only real complaint I have is the song order- Liars gets ballad-heavy and slow-paced in its midsection. None of the said ballads and slower songs are necessarily bad songs, but I still disliked the pacing. It felt as if I had finally come up for air when the disc snaps into the danceable, less friendly pop sound of "Living," but those who do love good, gentle pop songs may thoroughly enjoy the string of them in this later section of the record. Also, the subtle f-bomb he drops in "Flaw" might catch some by surprise, and depending on your taste, it'll do so in either a good or a bad way. There's a hint of wry humor in the song's theme, and the use of language drives it home, but some could see it as a disappointing and poor lyrical choice.
There are a few heavily spiritual themes in the disc; what religion or faith Rundgren is actually coming from isn't readily apparent though. He expresses his struggle with the subject of God's existence and trying to find direct contact with God in "God Said," but in the very next song, accuses an unnamed (but fairly obvious, nonetheless) nation of becoming too arrogant to follow and believe in a God of morality.
Being the young whippersnapper that I am and thus not familiar with Rundgren's earlier material, I had to do a bit of research to check out this artist's past history- and what I've found is indeed interesting. Rundgren has an intriguing musical past; he's created records that range from classic '70's pop/rock ("Something/ Anything?") to pure vocals ("A Cappella") to psychedelic prog/rock ("A Wizard, A True Star"), and many other completely enigmatic concept and gimmick discs. He's produced classic acclaimed records for the likes of Meat Loaf ("Bat Out of Hell") and Grand Funk Railroad ("We're An American Band"). It's been several years since he's created a truly new and complete pop record, but I believe fans of Rundgren's previous material can rest assured that Liars is a triumphant return. For those unfamiliar with Rundgren's work, Liars is a very smart and satisfying pop listen, and absolutely worth checking out.
4 tocks
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