[.ca] Magic And Medicine

blown away!:
I cant believe more people arent as impressed with this album as I am. First off its two cds for 11.99, second at least 80% of the music is off the charts good! Its certainly better than most music being made today. If you are a fan of fun trippy rock youll love it, thumbs up.

Wicked and Wise:
I loved their last album, and I didn't think that it could get any better. Well, maybe it hasn't, but it certainly has become more interesting. These guys have become MUSICIANS! Yeah, they're still having fun, and they're still tinged with macabre, but they certainly know more about what they're doing and how to do it. There is a sense of maturity to the whole thing. Songs like "Liezah" and "Bill McCai" are sharp and poignant, the former a lush guitar ballad, the latter a get-up romp. I thought of SO MANY different artists in the history of rock while I listened to this, that I finally came to the conclusion that this album is quite simply a classic.

Magical "Medicine":
Say bye-bye to the Coral's frenzied pirate-rock from their self-titled album. In "Magic & Medicine," the British rock band takes a more conventional, low-key approach to their music. And it pays off, with raw rockers, sweet love songs and dark tales. It starts off with ghostly love song "In the Forest" ("Out of the forest to the church's gate/By her grave she awaits her fate"). Folkier material follows in due course ("Don't Think You're The First"), along with catchy suicide stories ("Bill McCai"), lighter pop-rock ("Pass It On"), slow songs (piano-led "Eskimo Lament") and solid psychedelica ("Don't Think You're the First"). Accompanying "Magic & Medicine" is the bonus CD "Nightfreak & The Sons of Becker," possibly the weirdest title of the past year. This is a solidly lo-fi album, sort of a halfway point before their next release. It's stripped down and solidly scratchy, like a demo album, with acoustic gem "Sorrow or the Song" and psychedelic ka-bam "Precious Eyes." It takes a little time to "get" fully into "Magic & Medicine," especially if listeners expect more of the same. Rather than use a theme or gimmick (like the pirate thing), they go through some solid songs where their musical worth can shine through. They do stumble with some of the lower-key songs, like "Secret Kiss" or "Confessions of A.D.D.D." They're not bad, just lackluster. And that is "Magic & Medicine"'s biggest flaw --they lost some of that sizzling intensity. One thing that hasn't changed is the delicious weird edge of their songs. The evocative semi-psychedelic lyrics are well-suited to the music. The music itself is somewhat less intense, but now more acoustic and earthy. There's even piano and organ here, adding a richness to the music. James Skelly's shouting vocals have also toned down, showing that the man can actually sing. The evolution of the Coral pays off. "Magic & Medicine is less intense than the Coral's debut album, but more musically rich; "Nightfreak and the Sons of Becker" is less polished, but has that delicious rock bite. Definitely worth checking out.

Groovy, but disappointing...:
...at least when compared to The Coral's debut album. The problem with Magic & Medicine, in my opinion, is that it doesn't have the musical intensity or massively distinct aura "The Coral" had. It's much more subdued, albeit totally pleasant stuff, and this unfortunately makes for a lesser album than the first. Still, on the plus side, the album is strong all the way through, and there are a few standouts inparticular. The songs are all well written musically, with a bit less eccentric (and ultimately less interesting) instrumentation than we've heard from the guys' before, and the lyrics are light but generally smart and fun. Rhythm and harmony are in check too... These guys know how to write absorbing, multi-dimensional music. The standouts, in my opinion, would have to be the miserably catchy Bill Mc Cai (I CANNOT get it out of my head), the wise and hip "Don't Think You're the First", and the light and breezy "Pass It On". It's probably worth noting that musically these three songs are the most similar to each other, so maybe it's just a personal likeness... The slower songs, such as "Liezah" and "Eskimo Lament", are almost as good, and are positioned well on the album, but not quite as memorable. One pretty noticable problem here is the songs' average length, which is short short short. This is especially frustrating when the song's are so damn good (McCai) and pass just before you're about to really get into it. A few songs unfortunately come off like this, where a song like "Careless Hands" could have been cut in half. Overall, this is a fine album, and one that I've listened to probably at least 10 times already, but it still isn't quite up to par with "The Coral". No "Dreaming of You" or "Calanders and Clocks" here. At the same time, something about the music does represent a more mature sound, and I'm not exactly sure how I'd react to an album so alike to their debut. It's nice to see them go in a different direction and succeed on most accounts. I feel so mixed. :( Three and a half stars.

Funky but chic:
Before Franz Ferdinand came along, it seemed like The Coral may the next big band from England. This is their second album in a very short time. Most of their sound seems derived from early 1970s bands like Moody Blues and 1960s garage bands. The Coral have defined their sound and their influences over the past three years. They are very funky and musical. They are like good time rock and roll. The organ sound dominates in a lot of their songs. Much of their songs you can see working in a Guy Ritchie film. Whereas their first album seemed like a rush job, this second effort seems more like a complete album. There is a jazz and blues vibe on most of the tracks that seems like The Band or Canned Heat. There are a lot of British bands that meander for years and make people happy throughout. Maybe they can jump on the jam band bandwagon like Gomez. Then they could tour American colleges for years with Phish and Widespread Panic.

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