A City Dressed In Dynamite

I can see how someone could love this. It put me in mind of some of Tom Waits - that gritty burlesque - or Reverend Horton Heat (but without the frenetic rockabilly speed). It did not quite land for me, but I think that's a matter of personal taste. Certainly unique and not boring.

The lead signing has a Dr. John kind of feel, the songs are kind of crazy and very interesting. Dark but catchy, I really thought these guys had to be from around New Orleans… surprisingly they are New Englanders… and the Narcotics: Pit of Despair excerpts were a great addition. Enjoyed this trip from Squaresville… blasting off to Kicksville!

Doing the Edgelord's work.

It is certainly eccentric. It reminded me of Tom Waits at points. I do not think I would revisit this album, but it was interesting.

This thinks it's way cooler than it is. It isn't hard to imagine the frontman posting vaguely sociopathic things on Facebook about how his lifelong unemployment is actually a sacrifice he's made to bless everyone with *art*. "No, I didn't pay taxes; I just did all this for you for free". Oh thanks man! As appreciation, here's my 1/5.

This is great! It's like Nick Cave + Tom Waits + Foetus + Squirrel Nut Zippers + it's own thing. Wow! Thank you!

Delightfully weird and groovy. No track overstays its welcome.

Sometimes it sounded to me like one modern Screamin' Jay Hawkins. A peculiar record from a band I had heard of, but never actively listened to (until now). I know if I dedicated them enough time I would learn to love these songs. Damn modern times with such little disperse time for everything

That was pretty cool!

I love this! Thank you!

I loved this! Thanks for a great suggestion.

This is pretty cool stuff but the most cool thing is that the founding members of the group were in a group previous with someone named Thirstin’ Howll III which is extremely badass

Really strong choice, stuff similar to it, but still holds a unique place

Just short of sui generis, the music is kind to itself by getting better and even providing a sort of conclusion for itself. Even if the cop-out feels as worthless as throwing a clumsy pin, the sensation of listening is of one of the deeply ambiguous zones of the continent, which may simply be one of its arbitrary places.

Pretty cool. Reminds me just a little bit of an artist I love called Spottiswoode and His Enemies. Vocals are different but similar style. If you like this then I recommend you check out Spottiswoode. 4 stars.

I kicked this Damn Door down! Standouts: Damn Door, Cry Easy to listen to. Great style. He does sound like Tom Waits and some others but still I enjoyed it overall.

Wasn't certain what I was expecting but very much enjoyed this. 4.3

Rating: 8/10 Best songs: Damn door, Rob the prez-o-dent, Wintergreen, Pills for everything

All the genres, all at once.

I have no idea what this album is or how to describe it, but it's really cool. The production is great, which can't be easy on an album this unusual with this many moving parts. The lyrics fit the music perfectly, and the lead singer has a great voice that he uses to the fullest 4/5

Tom waits to front the Fun Lovin' Criminals, and the world passed by without noticing much. That's too bad because the first half of this LP is absolutely terrific, with all sorts of intoxicating arrangements the rather formulaic Fun Lovin' Criminals would have never thought of. That lead singer doesn't exactly nail what makes the Tom Waits persona so compelling, but this doesn't matter much given how unhinged and instantly memorable his lyrics and performance are anyway. Wish there were songs such as "Rob The Prez-O-Dent" these days to lambast the current orange gas balloon in the White House, or ones such as "Wintergreen" to say "OK Boomer" to all sorts of old farts. And the rest of the songs on that first half, mostly dealing with the throes of addiction for impoverished populations, manage to make that theme sound simultaneously cool and serious. Too bad that the second half of this LP is such a letdown after that, musically speaking at least. I can still appreciate the lyrical intent of a topical cut such as "Reagan's Kids", but honestly the compositions don't do it for me. "Mexico" also aims at offering a bouncier and more streamlined earworm in the middle of that second side, but said earworm fails short of making a lasting impression, unfortunately. Browsing through later That Handsome Devil albums, it looks like the band stayed on that rather inconsequential lane overall. That said, the touching accordion-enhanced ballad "Treefood" closing their debut redeemed its second half at the eleventh hour. If only there had been more proper songs like that in the LP's last leg instead of fillers... That last cut still manages to place *A City Dressed In Dynamite* in my "high rated albums" but that was a close call folks! And I'm afraid that won't be enough to keep this record in my own potential list of 1001 favorites. Handsome or not, the devil always lie in the details. 3.5/5 for the purposes of this list of essential albums, rounded up to 4 8.5/10 for more general purposes (5 + 3.5) Number of albums from the original list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 465 Albums from the original list I *might* include in mine later on: 288 Albums from the original list I won't include in mine: 336 ---- Number of albums from the users list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 13 Albums from the users list I *might* select for mine later on: 17 (including this one) Albums from the users list I won't select for mine: 30

Very... Interesting. Sometimes I got the feeling the vocals didn't match the music. But it ain't a bad album

Nice sound. Quite entertaining and new for me.

Rockabilly with some cool hip-hop vibes from time to time. Worth a listen because The Cramps and Stray Cats are my only other references!

Strangely enjoyable!

Interesting

Occupies a sonic space somewhere in between a knock-off Mr. Bungle and Fun Lovin' Criminals-adjacent irrelevance.

I liked the darkly idiosyncratic vibe of this album. But while this has all the pieces of something that I would enjoy, they don't quite fit. Fave Songs: Treefood, Wintergreen, Squares, Damn Door, Cry

What an odd album. It’s very hard to describe because it’s a mashup of like 10 disparate genres. Like there’s Tom waits type stuff mixed with hip hop and some psychedelic stuff almost and I don’t even really know what rockabilly is but just hearing the word describes the music tbh. Not something I’d listen to regularly I don’t think but will def remember.

You know when I first put this on I felt like it was just going to annoy the shit out of me but as I continued to listen it did kind of grow on me.

Yeah course

Dirty rockabilly

Would be right at home in the book proper. Take that as you will

Amusing rock album with some Tom Waits and Fun Lovin' Criminals vibes. Very varied musical context (blues, hip hop, hard rock, surf) and dr. John like vocal delivery. An entertaining eclectic and dynamic trip it is!

Not bad

It's like the soundtrack from a Tim Burton animation. I didn't hate it.

Cool, loose stuff. A million influences and genres in a blender, jazzy to an extent. Enjoyed it.

Reminds me of an 60s retro band. Very stylised but fun. I'm glad there's still these Tarantino Karaoke bands out. Quirky, packed full of ideas.......

This was surprisingly good. The singers voice was a mixed bag, but overall, an enjoyable 40 minutes

Enjoyed this very different mix of rock jazz and hip hop, got a bit strange as it went on, might come back to it, but not totally convinced yet.

Frustrating LP – some creative, fun, and insanely layered instrumentals going on that deserve a fitting vocal line, but instead, get Tom Waits 2.0 for over 50 minutes. I have never understood why people enjoy this style of singing (it gets right on my nerves and just plain irritates me) and I was disappointed that such great instrumentals had to sit beneath it. All a matter of taste I suppose, but I for one think we should leave Tom Waits and his questionable vocals in the past where he belongs.

This was an interesting listen. This fusion of genres feels pretty typical for the time. There’s a mix of blues, jazz, Eastern European rhythms, and darker tinged rockabilly. It feels a bit too much like Tom Waits cosplay more than anything.

Experimental rock, psychobilly, alternative hip hop, jazz-rock, alternative rock. Un sinsentido. Un 2.

I don’t like this. It’s a bit too dark and depraved for my tastes. I think this would be more relatable to listen to as an angsty teen, as opposed to a middle aged mum from the ‘burbs.

Unusual, odd, and atmospheric, although also a bit Scatman John in places. Rating: 2.5 Playlist track: Rob The Prez-O,-Dent Date listened: 14/11/24

Unfortunately this doesn't really work for me. For every song that is okay and possibly interesting, there are 3 where the super low graveley tom waits delivery gets in the way and seems more schlock than a style. Was happy when this was over.

It's a bit uneven. There's some energy early, but it sort of devolved a bit to be maybe not really listenable. Wish I could like it a bit more.

Interesting I guess, I think I liked it.

Very Tom Waits-y. I mean that derogatorily, but I liked a couple songs, so arguably better than a lot of Tom Waits albums.

These songs felt like the intro to cartoons like Courage the Cowardly Dog and Invader Zim. Very quirky and toe tapping.

For me, this is right there in the arty-farty corner with Frank Zappa and Captain Beefheart. Acts I both don't care for very much. That Handsome Devil actually do a good job of sounding like a 'wannabe' Zappa/Beefheart. Annoying.

My first thought when I listened to this album was could you imagine if this was your friends favorite album and every time you visited or got in their car they were itching to play this album. Thankfully this list only requires one day of listening to whatever that album was. A wild collection of songs that were like if Tom waits stopped smoking and was part of a cult. 2.8/10

I couldn’t make anything of this

Garbage