I usually make it a point not to review these sampler CDs, but this one is for a good cause. 5 Minute Walk usually sends the money made on their compilations to some kind of missionary, and Take Time To Listen Volume 5 is no exception. The liner notes claim, "Profits from this sampler will be split between the 5 Minute Walk House (a program feeding 150+ children each day in Valle Verde, Mexico) and EL Casa Hogar, an orphanage in Tijuana, Mexico." So you can help out the poor and listen to some great music, including unreleased tracks from The Ws and Five Iron Frenzy, all at the same time.
Take Time To Listen Volume 5 is set apart from the other Take Time To Listen albums in that, for the first time, bands from other labels besides 5 Minute Walk are included on it. Labels represented include the obvious 5MW (Soul-Junk, Philmore, Brave Saint Saturn, Model Engine, Rivulets and Violets, The Ws, Justin McRoberts and Five Iron Frenzy), ForeFront Records (Pax 217), Gotee Records (Relient K, John Reuben), and Sparrow Records (Earthsuit, The Elms, Luna Halo). Most of the bands are represented by their radio singles, so for the most part, the songs are very catchy and listenable. Highlights include Soul-Junk's "Ill-M-I" (the best white boy rap ever!), Model Engine's "Hang You Upside Down," and Philmore's "Our Finest Hour," which seems to herald the return of glam metal.
Also included as an incentive to buy the album are two previously unreleased tracks-The Ws' "Somewhere Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea" and a special "one voice" mix of Five Iron Frenzy's "Solidarity." The former is brand-new and somewhat of a departure for the band-"Somewhere" is a surf song that would have sounded at home on 1998's Surfonic Water Revival. The latter is essentially the same song as the one on the band's most recent album, All the Hype That Money Can Buy, but features lead singer Reese Roper singing both verses, rather than Randy Stonehill chiming in on the second one. Fans of the band will definitely want to pick it up.
5 Minute Walk is offering a fairly unique opportunity here: that is, to support world missions and hear some good music, all for $5.99. It can't be beat.
Other coverage for this album
ReAL Magazine 2000Reviewed by Kevin D. HendricksThe Take Time To Listen sampler returns with its fifth installment, and once again manages to venture beyond the stable of 5 Minute Walk recording artists. With 14 diverse alternative songs, a $3.99 sticker price, and the profits going to help children in Mexico, you can't go wrong. The album starts with a quirky little introduction from Dr. Mavin, "the smarty pants squirrel scientist," who is…The Phantom Tollbooth 2000Reviewed by Chelsea Lewis5 Minute Walk's sampler, Take Time to Listen Vol. 5, is unique to the other volumes, because bands from other labels are included. ForeFront Records' Pax 217, Gotee Records' Relient K and John Reuben, Sparrow Records' Earthsuit, The Elms and Luna Halo join 5 Minute Walk's Philmore, Brave Saint Saturn, The W's, Five Iron Frenzy, Justin McRoberts, Model Engine, Rivulets & Violets, and Soul-Junk on…The Phantom Tollbooth 2000Reviewed by Bert GanglCompilation recordings are usually a mixed blessing. By virtue of their collecting multiple artists on a single disc, they can significantly streamline the tedious task of finding first-rate new music. But, by virtue of that same eclecticism, they usually wind up being highly uneven, mostly hit-and-miss affairs. The fifth installment from 5 Minute Walk Records' Take Time to Listen series bills…
