Music Review: Counting Crows’ Saturday Nights

Daniel Dessinger — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 20:57:43 +0000

By Daniel Dessinger

April 11, 2008

Saturday Nights and Sunday Mornings is the first new studio release from Counting Crows since 2002's Hard Candy. Unlike Hard Candy, which I didn't particularly care for, Saturday Nights and Sunday Mornings really takes me back to the earlier, less saccharine sound that made Counting Crows instant stars on the alternative airwaves–and instant must-haves in my music collection.

I purchased the album off iTunes, where I received two exclusive bonus tracks, a digital CD booklet and a track-by-track video interview with Adam Duritz. It is divided into two themed sections; Saturday Nights features a driven, harsher rock sound, while most of the songs in Sunday Mornings take on a dreamier, country-infused acoustic tone. I think both themes suit the band very well, especially lead singer Duritz. He can wail over a hard guitar line or gently croon along to a fingerpicked guitar with equal measures of success.

For me, Counting Crows has always been a go-to band for the kind of evocative lyrics that I have always wished I could write. I spent many nights in high school and college with my headphones strapped on, listening to August and Everything After and Recovering the Satellites on repeat, scribbling furiously in one of the notebooks I kept stacked around my room.

Given my past with the band, I think I prefer the Sunday Mornings songs. The lyrics are never more heart-wrenching when they're paired with a stripped-down instrumental, allowing Duritz' mournful voice to really shine. The delicate acoustic guitar and piano on "Washington Square" marks the line in the sand between the album's themes, taking you from a late night rock concert to the slow, soft beginning of the morning after.

I do like the Saturday Nights tracks a lot, especially when I'm driving. The fast drum intro and catchy guitar riff of the opening song "1492" is one that really wakes me up in the morning on my daily commute, while "Los Angeles" has a very bluesy feel, reminiscent of Ryan Adams in a smoky club.

The two themes could have made it sound schizophrenic, and thematic albums can be risky moves for artists. (Tori Amos, I’m talking to you.) But I think the varied pace of the album makes it a well-rounded, enjoyable listen. Saturday Nights and Sunday Mornings was a long time coming for Counting Crows fans, but I think it was worth the wait.

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Music Review: Counting Crows’ Saturday Nights