Old 97's: Blame It On Gravity

By Vadim Rizov | May 13, 2008 | 3:57am

Music Reviews Music

The shit-kicking live shows have always been the strongest point of Old 97’s;

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in the studio, the band has had puzzlingly bad luck translating its tight

interplay and tighter songcraft. After the immaculate merger of studio brains

and visceral brawn on 1999’s Fight Songs, 2001’s Satellite

Rides

swung wildly for the arenas, and 2005’s Drag It Up was a reverb-sodden mess.

Settling into their 15th year, the 97’s seem understandably content to live out

their career-band days by trying their best in the studio, then making up the

difference live. Blame It On Gravity‘s clean, mild production

takes its cues from bands like Okkervil River, where the vocalist is treated as

a poet and put front-and-center in the mix. Things could be worse: Rhett Miller

is still capable of whipping out lovelorn character sketches and one-liners

like no one’s business. (The title refers to two alternative explanations for

his lady-friend’s tears: “Blame it on gravity… Blame it on being a girl.”) No

longer prone to aggressively fast rockabilly moments, the band sounds

competent, though rarely spectacular. Gravity should keep fans happy,

the unconverted will stay that way, and no one will be embarrassed.