Butch Walker - I Liked It Better When You Had No Heart [2/23]

Artist:

The Black Widows

UPC:

855105002011

Description:

Lyricists: Michael Trent; Butch Walker.
Personnel: Butch Walker (vocals, acoustic guitar, percussion); Chris Unck, Fran Capitanelli (guitar, background vocals); Wes Flowers (keyboards, background vocals); Darren Dodd (drums, background vocals); Jake Sinclair (percussion, background vocals); Michael Trent (background vocals).
Audio Mixer: Claudius Mittendorfer.
Recording information: Abbey Road Studios, London, UK; RubyRed Productions, Santa Monica, CA.
Photographer: Lucia Holm.
The day that Butch Walker runs out of melodies will be a dark day indeed, but he shows little sign of decline on his fifth solo effort. Like Sycamore Meadows, this album finds the 40-year-old Walker in a contemplative, autobiographical mood, referencing everything from his hair metal past to his Los Angeles home. It`s ostensibly a breakup record, too, with a rather despondent title and another sad, Southern-styled ballad, "Don`t You Think Someone Should Take You Home," that sounds like the companion piece to 2008`s "Here Comes The." If Walker is heartbroken, though, he doesn`t show it during some of the album`s best songs, from the roots rocker "Trash Day" to the shuffling "Temporary Title." Bad feelings also don`t prevent him from ornamenting the album with some of his best production to date. A sweeping, Phil Spector-styled string section opens "Pretty Melody," swells of vocal harmony pop up throughout "Stripped Down Version," and violins dart around the melody in "House of Cards." Michael Trent receives co-writing credits for roughly half of these tracks, but I Liked It Better When You Had No Heart is a Butch Walker album through and through. It`s also one of his best, proof that Walker still can`t take a step without bumping into a usable hook. ~ Andrew Leahey

Track Listing:

DISC 1

1. Trash Day
2. Pretty Melody
3. Don`t You Think Someone Should Take You Home
4. Stripped Down Version
5. Cana Dian Ten
6. Temporary Title
7. She Likes Hair Bands
8. House of Cards
9. They Don`t Know We Know
10. Days/Months/Years
11. Be Good Until Then

Album Information

Release Date:

02/23/2010

Type:

Performer

Genre:

Rock & Pop

Label:

One Haven Music

Producer:

Jake Sinclair; Butch Walker

Catalog Number:

OHM 1012

Original Release Year:

2010

# of Discs:

1

Studio/Live:

Studio

Mono/Stereo:

Stereo

Runtime:

40 : 3

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