There’s a ridiculous amount of talk surrounding the latest record from The Cribs, ‘For All My Sisters‘.
Unfortunately, much of it has centred around the decision to employ Ric Ocasek (of The Cars fame) as producer; the thinking, somehow, that this is some bid by the Jarman brothers to go pop, and leave their punkier roots behind.
On listening to the record, it would appear that much of this hysteria stems from people who have never listened to anything recorded or produced by Ocasek, but also by people who have not heard The Cribs before, and more importantly who have not listened to ‘For All My Sisters’.
Now Ocasek, undeniably, has a very particular style, this much has always been true. The Cars were a wonderful power pop band, but it’s this title which may be misleading people.
Power pop was merely punk rock that had a pop sensibility, but in no way pop music. And this is where this fit seems so perfect – only someone who had never listened to The Cribs before would fail to spot their music has always had a wonderful pop sensibility.
This album is no different.
Ocasek has brought a slight sheen to the production, but in saying that it must be remembered The Cribs are no longer a ramshackle bunch of kids from Wakefield, recording by the seat of their pants. These are wonderful and accomplished musicians, so recording an album well surely isn’t unexpected considering the last three records they have made have sounded much the same.
‘For All My Sisters’ sits amongst the best of their records. It is vibrant, lyrical, playful and inventive. It offers some wonderful and exciting music. Songs like ‘Different Angle‘ and ‘City Storms‘ are classic Cribs with wonderfully shambolic riffs that seem to fall out of the guitar, and with their inspired conversational approach to vocals, they are as brilliant and fascinating as anything recorded before.
The real difference here, and what Ocasek actually brings to The Cribs sound, is quite simply its space. Their flare, inventiveness and wit remain, but his distinctive production manages to give The Cribs room to breath, allowing songs to develop, rather than explode. With songs like the stunning ‘Simple Story‘ and the fascinatingly epic ‘Pacific Time‘ breathing long and deep there are nods to The Cars throughout, but in reality it bears most similarity to the powerful and brazen mid-tempo stomp that he brought to Weezer’s classic and subversive 1994 self-titled debut.
To merely write this off as some belated and futile attempt to finally grab attention or attain stardom is insulting. The Cribs have time and again shown a courageous ability to grow and innovate their sound. Trying many different avenues, merely in their own inimitable way. This record is just another example of them taking their sound and pushing it, pressing it, trying to see what can be done with it. And, although it may not reach the zenith of their collaboration with Sonic Youth’s Lee Ranaldo on ‘Be Safe‘, or the scathing humour of tracks like ‘Mirror Kisses‘ and ‘Hey Scenesters‘, that in no way diminishes it.
‘For All My Sisters’ is a wonderful record that competes with anything they have recorded before. In many ways, it is more cohesive and sustained than anything they have released before, its energy and excitement throughout never faltering. The Cribs are not ‘going pop’, although listening to this record they might be about to pop with excitement and energy.
They are just exploring their power pop abilities, and discovering that they can hold their own with anyone.