stories of a stranger

If you haven't checked out the new O.A.R. album yet, go pick it up. I've been grooving on it for the last few days now and it just keeps growing on me. It's definitely a different sound than their previous work, but I think it reflects some positive changes for the band.

It's far and away the best-produced of their albums, and all the songs are well put together and tightly focused. That's not to say that there isn't some jamming, but it doesn't have the live studio recording sound that their previous albums did. My only complaint has been that the saxophone is a little scarce on this one. I've really liked how they've built Jerry's sax work into their sound over the last few years, and I've always thought that it is what sets them apart from so many other alt rock bands. On Stories of a Stranger we don't get as much sax as I'd hoped, as it seems to have been shifted to the background for the time being. It's not that the songs aren't good the way they are, I just feel they could be even stronger. 52-50 is easily the closest they've ever come to capturing the raw energy and power of their live performance, and it happens to be built around the sax. Like Christopher Walken, I've got a fever and the only presciption is more SAX!

Seriously though, the album as a whole is great. The more I listen to it the more I like it, and I think the band is continuing to improve as musicians. Their live sound is still what drives their success, but this album is a step in the right direction for their studio work. I think that their next album will continue this shift towards a more complex sound, and I'm hoping it will incorporate Jerry a bit more, but for now, I'm loving Stories of a Stranger.