Live Live In Paris Manchester NH

Live Live In Paris

Backyard Babies

BMG, 2005

REVIEW BY: Chris Harlow

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 05/31/2005

Being a fan of the Backyard Babies has always been paradoxicallychallenging for me. I list them as one of my favorite bands butonly find myself really caring about the superb Total 13 release when it comes time for me to pop a disc oftheirs into the player. With just four studio releases in theircatalog, this is obviously a paltry percentage of albums that getme amped but I have always contended that there must be somethingmore to it for me to still find myself raising the band's flag sohigh after recent subpar releases.

I think I now have it figured out in a way that makes sense forme to explain. Live Live In Paris proves the Backyard Babies are a bandthat thrives with their sound found outside of the studio. I guessthis can be said for a lot of punk bands -- did I say punk band?Well, there is the problem. The band's last two albums, Stockholm Syndrome and Making Enemies Is Good, are so overproduced that the bandcomes off sounding herbivorous in nature, as in, anything butpunk.

Where Live Live In Paris comes in to save the day is that it takeswhat on paper looks like a dreadful setlist from a May, 2004 gig atthe La Maroquinerie and reinvents those questionable songs intosounds similar to those that make Total 13 so appealing to me. Songs such as "Earn The Crown,""Brand New Hate" and "Minus Celsius" benefit from the proteiningestion of the Backyard Babies' live sound and turn Live Live In Paris into an event that proves the true rootof this paradox, as those songs are just plain awful on the studioalbums in which they are found. Throw in the Total 13 tracks"Made Me Madman," "Highlights" and "U.F.O.Romeo" among others, and Live Live In Paris becomes more of a complete listen.

Humourously, I'll point out that it's with the track "U.F.O.Romeo" that I have to really question what I am hearing. Inintroducing the track, vocalist Nicke Borg bellows, "alrightHouston….you've got a problem!!!" Does Borg think I'm on asmany drugs as him in trying to pass this over on me? I doubt he'sobscuring some benign reference to Houston in linking NASA andUFO's together. I mean his audience is supposedly French and we allknow the French aren't that smart. Thankfully, lead guitarist,Dregen throws in the obligatory "merci!" at the end of the trackwhich will keep me from putting certain production rumors intoplay.