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album review
Leave it to those crazy kids in Relient K to aim for the title of "longest EP ever" with The Bird and the Bee Sides, easily the most ambitious ancillary collection the band has assembled thus far. The disc was released at a time when the quintet's label, Gotee Records, dissolved its partnership with EMI, which owned a minority stake in the small, Franklin, TN-based company. It almost appears as if this sense of autonomy and liberation allowed the group and its benefactors to clean out the closet and compile highlights from all their previous EPs -- six in all -- many of which are out of print and predated the group's major-label breakthroughs, mmhmm and Five Score and Seven Years Ago. Throughout the duration of this 13-track stretch, it's fun to trace the evolution of Relient K from silly funnymen to straight-faced modern rockers: the band's customary pop-punk rears its head all along, but there are also acoustic ballads, synth-caressed '80s pop, and a nod or two to Ben Folds-styled sensitivity. But there's more: seemingly aware that no number of warmed-over rarities or B-sides necessarily justifies the price of a full album, Relient K went a step further and recorded 13 new songs, discreetly included in this bundle as the "Nashville Tennis EP". Since it's not really a new studio album, frontman Matthew Thiessen went ahead and relinquished some of the singing and songwriting duties to his bandmates, resulting in sessions that aren't nearly as pristine or fleshed-out as those of a de facto Relient K project, but that are still serviceable in the context of an in-between non-album. Enjoyed as a whole, The Bird and the Bee Sides is an all-around nice gesture -- a more than generous gift to fans and an EP with one of the highest bang-for-buck ratios in the history of modern rock. ~ Andree Farias, All Music Guide
more albums by this artist
See all-
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- Five Score And Seven Years Ago
- Released 2007
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- The Anatomy Of The Tongue In Cheek
- Released 2001
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- Apathetic EP
- Released 2005
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listener reviews
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my input
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- By pcesparza
- 11/18/2008 03:25:48
- yeah, i've listened to this EP and yeah, it's one of the best they've made in my opinion
- 1 out of 1 people
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Hi
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- By Cinderella13
- 8/12/2008 00:58:30
- You have a new Cd?? Thats cool...
- 0 out of 1 people
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How are baby CDs made?
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- By N4v164t0r
- 8/6/2008 12:15:17
- Let me tell you, son, about The Bird and the Bee Sides. Relient K is at it again, releasing another compilation album, but, unlike the (mostly) average Let It Snow Baby... Let It Reindeer, this album won't annoy the listener excessively. The first half, The Nashville Tennis EP, consists of a lot of songs with banjo guitar, usually mixing with well-produced guitar. The songs that aren't country-ish sound great as well, bringing to mind the emotively deeper moments from Mmhmm and Five Score And Seven Years Ago.<br/><br/>The second half (which you can call The Bird and the Bee Sides) mostly consists of... b-sides. You'll find acoustic versions of songs from earlier albums, some demo songs, and most of these come from other EP b-sides.<br/><br/>What can I say? If you like Relient K, then this is worth getting (you're basically getting 2 albums for the price of one all on one CD). If not, nothing here is going to change your mind about them
- 3 out of 3 people
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