Sean Lennon's "Friendly Fire"
to anyone obsessed with getting the timing right on these posts, i know you'll immediately think, "wow, she's a little late on this guy." but i'm not. and that's because this is still rising in the amount of attention it's getting - you can decide how much it deserves.

the musical artistry behind Friendly Fire does not come on slowly. it's a slow album, yes. it creeps into your ear canals on all fours, laughing quietly. it takes its time to permeate all the little gray noodles of your brain. but it is instantly apparent how talented and serious of a musician Sean has turned out to be. he's dropped the strictly 60's pop act to branch out into his own style, a soothing, Clapton-y, sometimes ballad/sometimes sunshine pop record. i have spent the morning listening to it again, and it's put me under a spell, a city sidewalk hazy daze. it has calmed me. more importantly than anything, Fire stands on its own, glows without fade and does not wear thin. what more can any music listener ask for?

ah. sigh.

i wish we could drop Sean's last name, but we can't. he has a last name. i have a last name, you have one, my neighbors have one, each, respectively. my mom has one, my dad, your mom and dad, maybe the same as yours and maybe not - yep. it's a last name world. but your last name isn't Lennon - and Sean's is. (not to mention that Sean rhymes with "John" - maybe you see where this is going.) and with a last name like that, anyone gets expectations. a hundred things flood into the brain. i ask you, how couldn't they? where would they hide? you'd be denying the basic reflexes of the gray stuff in-between your ears.

but it's important to remember that, presumably, just as you intend not to become your parents, so we can't expect Sean to genuinely channel his father. it annoys me that reviewers expect a prodigy and an undying legacy. can we ever have another John Lennon? i'm diehard, so i'll say absolutely not. but let's especially not apply that pressure to his son who happened to take his career in the same direction as both of his parents. this is a beautiful album, and that should not be denied the artist just because he's the spawn of (maybe) the most famous name in rock 'n roll history. just listen to the end of "Would I Be The One." fall into the title track. let "Headlights" wash over you, and cry over "Falling Out Of Love." all of these songs deserve their due - and not out of criticism, and not out of the other end of all this, which would be unnecessary reverence. Sean has a different, separate heartbeat than his father did. he has different hands to play guitar. and he'll work with whomever he pleases, thank you.

::::after all that defense, here's the proof:
Sean Lennon - Friendly Fire
Sean Lennon - Would I Be The One
Note: we're having some trouble with tagging our mp3s at the moment, so they don't show up correctly on any blog aggregators, but you can still grab them just fine. the problem should be fixed after this weekend. let me know if there are any other problems.

i highly recommend you purchase this record and make up your own mind.
looking for his myspace? don't worry, it's here.
and, as always, the hype will help render useless the "purchase" link i have up there, unless you're a respectable citizen and you actually support artists. although, i mean, this kid is so fucking wealthy. my god.

....he does look like him though, doesn't he? the beatles tend to reincarnate themselves in their children before they even die. well, at least George did with Dhani, didn't he? have you seen that kid?  shan  11:26 AM  |  view comments (1)