I least have to give the Delgadoes credit. I listened intently to them, trying to figure out if I loved them or hated them. And with Oxford Collapse, the first listen may not have done it for me, but I had that feeling that continued listens would be worthwhile. All this is a nice introduction for my feelings about You and Me by the Walkmen. After about the fifth listen, I realized that the marginal utility for each subsequent listen would be nil. Not only was I getting nothing out of it, it was preventing me from exploring other, more interesting music. So, I stopped listening to it. I can't even comment on individual tracks because they all sounded the same. What did they sound like? They sounded like a NYC band trying to be arty at different tempos. I'm sure there are editors of hipster magazines that are working themselves into a lather describing the detached vocals or the guitars that just rip right through each song. Yawn. Blah. So orchestrated arty, but without any redeeming quality.
The intangible with this album is simple. Would I rather listen to anything else? If it was Jack Johnson, I would rather listen to the Walkmen's You and Me. Other than that, I think I'd try the other band.
Final Rating: D.
