ITALIANO by THE BEATINGS
— 2000 —
— Twins —
— How Many Times Can You Say Goodbye to the Same Person? —
— Nothing —
— Fucking —
— The Art of Leaving —
— I Don’t Know the Truth (But I’ve Memorized the Rumors) —
— New Destroyer —
— Gratis & Keiber —
— Opportunity Crisis —
— Stock Car Driver’s Lament —
— Two Steps Back —
— Addicted to Freaks —
— Refueling Vehicles —
— Art of Leaving II —
— Heavy Metal —
— Bloated and Disabled —
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CD
MP3
MDRF001 | FEB 2002 | 59:41 | Full Length CD
“At its highest level, rock and roll has a visceral energy matched by intellectual prowess. This is rock as art and not just fun. The Beatings, a four-piece band that calls both Brooklyn and Boston home, seems to hit this highest standard on its recently released CD “Italiano.” Hard-rocking it has less in common with today’s indie bands than it does with groups like Husker Du and the Ass Ponys. Which means it’s a band that seems unconcerned with trying to fit into a certain niche and focuses instead on creating a riveting, propulsive and ever-changing sound.”
—Joe Heim, the Washington Post
“Definitely one of the best CDs I got to hear in a while. I heard these guys and girl on Boston’s 89.3 on the way to work and forgot the named of the band. Needless to say, I hear this rocking-out song (“Twins”)with this repeating guitar squelching noise, and I was more than psyched. The song has that catchiness accompanied by an embracing noise, sort of like Husker Du or Superchunk. That song alone has the ability to make you just go and grab your (air or otherwise) and jam along, and it only gets better from there. “New Destroyer” is a truly depressing song, but you can’t help but bob your head to it. “Addicted to Freaks” brings the rock back with a great singing/screaming duet. Musically, The Beatings change direction multiple times, but there’s a real sense of character to the music that keeps welcoming you back. You can call it “postpunk”, you can call it “aggro, indie rock”, hell, call it whatever you want. Just make sure the word “great” is in there. Italiano is a keeper.”
— Dana Morse, Punk Planet
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“These guys (and girl) fucking rock! But then again, I’m a sucker for anything Mission of Burma/Husker Du/Pixies-inspired. Their recently released full-length, Italiano, is their best effort yet, and leaves no question as to whether the future looks bright for this Boston four-piece — it could be blinding. Request “Heavy Metal” — it’ll knock your socks off.” — Ken Switzer, Village Voice
“By design as much as by chance, the Beatings have made a chaotic recording in the spirit of post-punk Minnesota outfits. It begins, surprisingly, over tinkling keyboards, as bassist/vocalist Erin Dalbec introduces the band who might at this very minute be wrecking a club in your home town. The sweetness ends with “Twins”, a Bob Mould song in all but name, and then the band hits its peak. “How Many Times Can You Say Goodbye to the Same Person?” is an immediate classic, with screaming pleas, nerve-wracked guitars and a less-than-comforting lyrical strangeness (“I thought you’d never leave / The coffin came out and you begged to stay”). The actual lyrical content (“Big winds blow through empty caverns”) does not suggest the song’s visceral power, because it’s the group’s energy that drives everything home. They are as juvenile and reckless as the Replacements (drunk before cops in Stink), with music that will please punkers one moment, emo types the next, and girl group fanatics every time the sweet-voiced Dalbec takes center stage. Though Dalbec’s songs are such an anomaly that they throw me off course, I’m delighted that her songs aren’t relegated to side projects. The band’s strongest appeal, in fact, is to always come across as if they are performing whatever they damn well want. They follow Dalbec’s new wave chic with a dirge (“I Don’t Know the Truth”) that’s Joy Division 101, then follow a New Day Rising-like number with a plaintive acoustic track (“Stock Car Driver’s Lament”). Violins enter “Refueling Vehicles”, suggesting the group’s odd mix of material has an obscure Mekons influence, and the record ends with frivolity (“Wow, heavy metal / Torture for my soul”) and a heap of screams and pain (“Bloated and Disabled”). If you look to rock for cathartic release, it’s songs like “Bloated” (“You try killing yourself slowly…Making it slow so no one can tell”) and “How Many Times” that make this disc essential. Aspiring rockers might find the group more vital for proving that you can have inconsequential things to say, yet fool everyone with powerpacked performances and middle-fingered variations. Now do yourself a favor: see The Beatings in concert and watch them revive the spirit of rock.” — Theodore Defosse, Splendid
“Boston’s The Beatings have made a lot of noise in their short history. Last year’s “6hz” EP kicked out the jams with charming
and shaky confidence, garnering comparisons to the Pixies, Guided by Voices and other indie royalty. “Italiano” is their first full length, and if it’s any indication of the band’s future, I would put on some sunglasses. The songs are all over the map in terms of style, but rarely sound derivative. “How Many Times Can You Say Goodbye to the Same Person?” ends with clever rhythmic conceit, subtly slowing the Frank Black-esque vocals and loping drums to a snail’s pace by song’s end. “Nothing” is punk pop at its best, with bassist Erin Dalbec sounding like a lo-fi Veruca Salt or harder-edged Velocity Girl. “The Art of Leaving” is the best mostly-instrumental song I’ve heard in years, simultaneously intuitive, bittersweet and brooding. There’s really nothing you could find to complain about on this album, except that there isn’t more of it. The Beatings are like that friend that everyone should have. They’re funny, smart and perpetually in a state of kicking your ass.” — John WenzeL , Shredding Paper