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The Knitters
The Modern Sounds of The Knitters
(Zoe)
First Appeared in The Music Box, September 2005, Volume 12, #9
Written by T.J. Simon
In 1985, members of the seminal L.A. punk band X (minus Billy Zoom) joined
forces with The Blasters’ Dave Alvin for a country-driven side-project known as
The Knitters. The resulting album Poor Little Critter on the Road was
noteworthy if only because of the punk rock aesthetic that the band brought to
the performance of straightforward, classic country and western swing material.
The reformation of the band 20 years later on The Modern Sounds of The
Knitters fails largely because the novelty of punk rockers singing country
was swept away with the tidal wave of sneering, alternative acts that have
emerged over the past two decades. As a result, all that remains are substandard
songs performed by artists whose best moments can be found elsewhere.
About half the vocals on The Modern Sounds of The Knitters are
performed by Exene Cervenka, but her voice just isn’t up to the task. Her
off-key delivery on tunes like Give Me Flowers while I’m Living and
Skin Deep Town are simply cringe-inducing. John Doe does the singing on the
passable Try Anymore (Why Don’t We Even) as well as a handful of other
inoffensive numbers, but for a better example of his considerable talents, look
no further than his solo album Forever Hasn’t Happened Yet, which
was released earlier this year. As for Dave Alvin, his guitar work is fine,
particularly on The New Call of the Wrecking Ball, but the fact remains
that there are countless other points in his career when his contributions have
been better utilized — such as on his considerable solo catalog as well as his
work with The Blasters.
To make matters worse, The Modern Sounds of the Knitters ends with a
terrible cover of Born to Be Wild, which serves only to draw this
inessential outing to an unnecessarily bad conclusion. While it’s nice to get
together with old friends for a reunion, more thought should go into any album
that is meant to memorialize the event. 
The Modern Sounds of The Knitters is available
from Amazon.com. To order, Click Here!
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Ratings
1 Star: Pitiful
2 Stars: Listenable
3 Stars: Respectable
4 Stars: Excellent
5 Stars: Can't Live Without It!!
Copyright © 2005
The Music Box
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