A few years ago The D Man overlooked Phoenix's phenomenal album, It's Never Been Like That, and decided to send the band the only apology that he will ever make to the French.
"Your recent record is really good. It is smart, precise, urban-cool rock'n'roll. It is put on your tight jeans and denim jacket and strut down the street rock'n'roll. It is hang out with hot hipster chicks backstage rock'n'roll. It bounces, shuffles, and strums. It's guitars go "Da-Da, Da-Da, diddy-diddy-diddy-diddy!" Buddy Holly would have dug it. Or maybe the Kinks. So don't worry if one critic called you the "soft-rock Strokes"--that band is envious and only wish their last two albums were as good as yours. Your nonchalant cool is the genuine artifact, not so thoroughly manufactured. Indeed, your music will soon be used during a SoHo storefront montage in some hip movie. Even if you are from Paris. And that's just it--perhaps I was holding it against you, the fact that you are Frenchmen. Because you should have made my Top Twenty last year. So this time, let me raise the white flag, surrender, and say I'm sorry."
There was no missing out for The D Man on Phoenix's fantastic 2009 album, Wolfgang Phoenix Amadeus Mozart. Maybe the slickest rock'n'roll album of the decade. The first two tracks are the best one-two punch of the year and are two of the finest pop-rock songs you've ever heard. Yes, "Lisztomania" and "1901" are as good as it gets. But the rest of the album doesn't stop bringing the ultra-cool hooks, with the likes of "Fences", "Lasso," and "Girlfriend" competing for your unfettered attention. Unlike many bands that vainly attempt to recreate their previous albums or recreate themselves entirely, Phoenix simply kept their core identity intact while incorporating synths and alternative rhythms to perfection. Voila. One of the best albums of the year.
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