Element 101 -- Stereo Girl

8/10

Element 101 amplify everything that was good about their debut on their sophomore album, Stereo Girl. What results is a delightful album not that far off from what would happen if a female fronted Further Seems Forever (hey, more on that in the next post!). Punk is an influence here, but not an attempted genre. This is rock music, plain and simple, full of energy and swagger, intelligently written, with some nice twists and turns along the way. Speaking of intelligence, it only takes a glance at the song titles to see that Crissie Verhagen has a brain in her noggin, and her introspective, personal lyrics are a great finishing touch on these eleven enjoyable tracks. Added bonus: there are actually twelve tracks, but it would have ruined my alliteration!

Random Comments about Element 101:
1. Element 101 are from New Jersey. That state could have done a lot better for itself if it had put marketing behind this fresh faced group of youngsters:

Instead of these "people"

That's life, I guess.
2. One of my radio co-hosts and I always said that if Element 101 were still around when we eventually married our respective wives, we would get them to play our weddings...too bad we're both slowpokes. Element 101 broke up nine years ago.
3. Speaking of DJ'ing, a pal of mine won Stereo Girl from the show I would eventually co-host. He didn't like it and passed it on to me. His loss.
4. I saw this band when they were touring this record. Before the show, I went over to the merch booth to buy a t-shirt and saw Element 101's bass player hanging out. We had a nice conversation for about fifteen minutes, while another buddy of mine stood next to me, silent. Afterward, my friend said, "Wow, I've never heard two people refer to each other as "man" in my entire life more than that single conversation just now." Being a quarter Sicilian in a land of few Italians, I guess talking with another Dago brought that side out of me, and I've noticed it has every time I converse with a New Jersyan, I.E., "Yeah, man, I don't know, man, I guess there are a lot of gardens in our state, man." Speaking of genetic makeup, the French comes out when I am looking thin and angular, and the Irish comes out when I am overweight and magically transform into "Fat Irish Mike." I am not saying that Irish people as a whole are overweight. Obviously, that is not true. I am just saying that if you have ever seen me with a few extra pounds on my face, you know exactly what I am talking about.
5. This has got to be my most offensive post in a while. Leave it to the cast of Jersey Shore to suck the class out of a place...

2001 Tooth & Nail Records
1. To Whom It May Concern 3:01
2. Dead Romance Language Club 2:46
3. A Faithful Fascination 4:10
4. Standing on the Edge of Night 3:56
5. Today and Always 2:45
6. Just to Like You 3:07
7. 20 Years in the Making 3:32
8. A Wish for You 3:04
9. Private Conversations 3:33
10. A Desperate Plea for the Retallation of the Mundane 3:42
11. Introspective 2:41
12. Skyline Silhouettes 4:38