100 Broken Windows Chicago IL

100 Broken Windows

Idlewild

Capitol Records, 2000

REVIEW BY: George Agnos

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 07/26/2001

Rock and roll ain't dead yet, folks. There still is some life tothis music, and there is no better proof of this than listening to 100 Broken Windows, the latest release by the Scottish rockband Idlewild.

What makes 100 Broken Windows such a great listen is they follow arecipe that many great rock and roll albums use. They take theinfluences of their favorite artists, and add their own perspectiveto it, making their music sound fresh, yet familiar.

The two artists Idlewild seems to be heavily influenced by areR.E.M. and Nirvana - not bad choices at all. Just listen to theopening track of this CD called "Little Discourage". At first, Ithought I put on an old R.E.M. CD by mistake. The melody of thissong and the cryptic lyrics make this sound like it came straightout of R.E.M.'s Murmur or Reckoning albums.

However, listening to "Little Discourage", I find some distinctdifferences. The jangly guitar sound of those R.E.M. songs arenowhere to be found, replaced by Rod Jones' more aggressive punkyguitar lines. Also, singer Michael Woomble's voice is much moreforceful and clearer. Woomble definitely wants you to hear thepoetic lyrics.