I was wondering what happened to these guys. Apparently they have been touring Europe and, in doing so, they recorded this CD. During a three-day event at the Heineken Music Hall in Amsterdam (Feb 4th-6th, 2003), Adam Duritz and his flock laid down some tracks that have endeared them to their fans for years, but here they dig deep into their souls to re-release some inner feelings that must have been stored away for ages. This CD has a sorrowful, soulful sound that brings a new darkness to these songs. August and Everything After is the only Crows CD I own; there are some sad songs, but there are some upbeat ones too. On this tour, the band kicked it down a few notches.
"Rain King" starts it out. I always liked that tune, very upbeat. Here, Duritz turns it into a slow ballad while using his piano and the sounds of the slide guitar to give it a more blues style than it had previously. Duritz slows down the tempo by allowing his voice to swim deep into the waves of the lyrics, pulling out its energy and giving it a gentile, sweet sound. This revives the song and gives a new look at old words. This is done on the next track also, "Richard Manuel Is Dead". Here, the band brings the song on strong, but a little slower than previously done. Duritz belts out the lyrics with vigor. As the guitar solo cries outs its part, the rest of the band brings it around with an almost "Grateful Dead-ish" mix that comes from the drums, bass and Hammond B-3 Organ
"Omaha" has to be my favorite song from August... and here the tempo stays the same, with Duritz again coming on strong. The mandolin comes into play on this track and really adds light to the darkness of this song. "Miami" follows with its with pop rhythm and heavy electric guitar riffs. It still amazes me how this band can take lyrics that make you reflect on certain aspects of relationships, and drop them into a heavily filled rock guitar anthem melody and still make you feel depressed as you find yourself head banging in front of the speakers. Energy with sorrow...its the only way I can explain it.
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