The Spill Magazine The Spill Magazine
The Spill Magazine The Spill Magazine
The Spill Magazine The Spill Magazine
16
new
SPILL FEATURE: THE LOOK AND THE SEXUAL CONFIDENCE – A CONVERSATION WITH CAROLE POPE
SPILL VIDEO PREMIERE: GOLIATHAN – “ALBION”
SPILL FEATURE: FAREWELL TO THE EINSTEINS OF CONSCIOUSNESS – A CONVERSATION WITH TORONTO’S UBIQUITOUS SYNERGY SEEKER
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: REGNVM ANIMALE – IGNIS SACER
SPILL VIDEO PREMIERE: GRIEVOUS ANGELS – “CHILD OF GOD”
SPILL FEATURE: TOMORROW COMES FROM TODAY – A CONVERSATION WITH CHARLIE ANGUS OF GRIEVOUS ANGELS
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: RHYE – HOME
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: STEVE HACKETT – UNDER A MEDITERRANEAN SKY
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: HERE LIES MAN – RITUAL DIVINATION
SPILL VIDEO PREMIERE: SCOTT KLEIN – “WHAT’S MY NAME”
SPILL MUSIC PREMIERE: SOUTH OF FRANCE – “SIDEWALK”
SPILL VIDEO PREMIERE: HOT LIPS – “FEMICIDE”
SPILL ALBUM PREMIERE: KATEY MORLEY – HEARTS & HEADS & THOUGHTS & DEEDS
SPILL VIDEO PREMIERE: LEAHY – “GOOD WATER”
SPILL NEW MUSIC: BILL JR. JR. (A.K.A. VANCOUVER SINGER-SONGWRITER RUSSELL GENDRON) TO RELEASE ‘HOMEBODY’ ON JANUARY 26 | SINGLE “DEAR NEIGHBOUR” OUT NOW
SPILL NEW MUSIC: CAPE TOWN PUNK-DUO THE SOAPGIRLS RELEASE “HEART IN BLOOM” – A LOCKDOWN TRIBUTE TO HOPE AND LOVE
  • MORE
  • Reviews
    • Album Reviews
    • Features
    • Live Reviews
    • Festivals
  • Portraits
  • Headlines
    • News
    • Contests
    • Events
    • Entertainment Headlines
    • Concert Listings
    • Toronto Concert Venues
  • New Music
    • Premieres
    • TOTD
  • Books + Movies
  • Scene Unseen
  • About
  • Spill Menu
    • Reviews
      • Album Reviews
      • Features
      • Live Reviews
      • Festivals
    • Portraits
    • Headlines
      • News
      • Contests
      • Events
      • Entertainment Headlines
      • Concert Listings
      • Toronto Concert Venues
    • New Music
      • Premieres
      • TOTD
    • Books + Movies
    • Scene Unseen
    • About
REGISTER
@
LOGIN
Album Reviews
827
previous article
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: K.FLAY - EVERY WHERE IS SOME WHERE
next article
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: AYE NAKO - SILVER HAZE

SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: VARIOUS ARTISTS – RESISTANCE RADIO: THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE ALBUM

Resistance Radio

Various Artists
Resistance Radio: The Man In The High Castle Album
Sony Music

A  compilation album put together by Danger Mouse and Sam Cohen as an imagined soundtrack from the Amazon series The Man In The High Castle.  The title, Resistance Radio is borrowed from that show and is the name of the pirate station featured in that show.

The idea, it seems, is for old standards to be covered by today’s artists (and some not really  from today).  The main problem is that cover albums are tricky.  The best ones are the ones in which the artist has some kind of historical or emotional tie to the music (think David Bowie’s Pin Ups, Bryan Ferry’s These Foolish Things, John Lennon’s Rock ‘n’ Roll).  Various artists compilation  are even more tricky  Again, the best ones are based around a theme and the artists involved work within a certain parameter (think the incredible Stay Awake, as realised by Hal Willner or Peter Gabriel’s Scratch My Back) .

On Resistance Radio: The Man In The High Castle Album, although there are some very fine artists and very fine songs, the two elements don’t seem to connect.  There are some brilliant moments when everything falls into place.  Kevin Morby makes “I Only Have Eyes For You” his own, almost making you forget The Flamingos ever touched it.  He does this with strong production, clever arrangements and incredibly smooth vocals.  Andrew VanWyngarden takes “Nature Boy” and turns it upside down with an arrangement that turns the warm Nat King Cole song into a nightmare.  But these moments are very few and far between.

Some of the covers do not work at all.  Norah Jones, a terrific talent in her own right, just does not do justice to “Unchained Melody”.  She seems to lose the melody and the arrangement does not flatter her voice.  Beck seems to be smirking through “Can’t Help Falling In Love With You” which proves somewhat distracting and Grandaddy seems to be uninterested in the song “Love Hurts”.

To be honest, the majority of the artists just do not seem to be committed to the project.  When I saw the songs and the artists involved, I was very excited, but the album does not live up to expectations.  Perhaps the artists would have done better with songs from their childhood.

As a side note, I cannot help but think this album reflects today’s music.  In the 50’s (an era where most of these songs come from), it was all about the single.  Albums had fillers and pop/rock fans focused on the single. The Beatles changed all that, and for about 40 years it became about solid albums.  Now, with downloads, we are really back to the 50’s.  Download the single and ignore the album.  This compilation is made for downloading and I am sure many select songs will find their way into playlists somewhere.



Album Link

Item Reviewed

SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: VARIOUS ARTISTS – RESISTANCE RADIO: THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE ALBUM

Author

Aaron Badgley

Here's what we think...
Spill Rating
Fan Rating
Rate Here
New Criteria
10
7.7
5.0
Total Spill Rating
7.7
Total Fan Rating
You have rated this
Album Reviews
album reviewsandrew vanwyngardendanger mousei only have eyes for youkevin morbynature boyresistance radio: the man in the high castle albumsam cohensony musicthe house of the rising sunthe man in the high castlevarious artists
album reviews, andrew vanwyngarden, danger mouse, i only have eyes for you, kevin morby, nature boy, resistance radio: the man in the high castle album, sam cohen, sony music, the house of the rising sun, the man in the high castle, various artists
About the Author
Aaron Badgley
Aaron Badgley
Born and raised in Whitby, Aaron discovered music through his love of The Beatles. This led to a career in radio, writing for various publications, and ultimately a radio show about The Beatles (Beatles Universe), which ran for over four years. When not immersed in music, Aaron enjoys spending time with the loves of his life -- his wife Andrea, and daughters Emily and Linda (all of whom have an intense love of music too).
RELATED ARTICLES
album reviewsdanger mousekevin morby
 
7.0
Regnvm Animale
10

SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: REGNVM ANIMALE – IGNIS SACER

by Bryan Williston on January 24, 2021
Regnvm Animale Ignis Sacer Deutsche Bulvan Bolag ‘Unchecked growth sees capitalist greed choking democracy, while global temperatures rise at an alarming rate.’ With such a [...]
 
7.0
Rhye

SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: RHYE – HOME

by Robert Defina on January 22, 2021
Rhye Home Last Gang Records Toronto-born Michael Milosh has been able to cultivate something both unique and engaging with Rhye–a sultry, soothing mix of R&B and indie pop which toes the line [...]
 
9.0
Steve Hackett

SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: STEVE HACKETT – UNDER A MEDITERRANEAN SKY

by Aaron Badgley on January 22, 2021
Steve Hackett Under A Mediterranean Sky Inside Out Music Under A Mediterranean Sky is Steve Hackett’s first studio album since 2019’s At The Edge Of Light, and his first [...]
 
9.0
Here Lies Man

SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: HERE LIES MAN – RITUAL DIVINATION

by Gerrod Harris on January 22, 2021
Here Lies Man Ritual Divination RidingEasy Records Having burst onto the scene in 2017 with their self-titled debut record, LA’s Here Lies Man has only continued to dive deeper [...]
 
7.0
Azure Ray

SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: AZURE RAY – AZURE RAY (20th ANNIVERSARY VINYL EDITION)

by Samantha Stevens on January 16, 2021
Azure Ray Azure Ray (20th Anniversary Vinyl Edition) Flower Moon Records To celebrate the 20-year anniversary of their self-titled debut album, Azure Ray has [...]
Latest Album Reviews
View All
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: REGNVM ANIMALE – IGNIS SACER
7.0
10
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: RHYE – HOME
7.0
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: STEVE HACKETT – UNDER A MEDITERRANEAN SKY
9.0
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: HERE LIES MAN – RITUAL DIVINATION
9.0
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: AZURE RAY – AZURE RAY (20th ANNIVERSARY V...
7.0
Latest Live Reviews
View All
 
Lord Huron

SPILL LIVE REVIEW: LORD HURON ALIVE FROM WHISPERING PINES: EPISODE 1 OF 4 (VIRTUAL EVENT)

by Robert Defina on January 7, 2021
88
 

SPILL LIVE REVIEW: WARDRUNA – ‘KVITRAVN’ PRESENTATION (ONLINE PERFORMANCE)

by Samantha Wu on December 10, 2020
158
 
Evanescence

SPILL LIVE REVIEW: EVANESCENCE @ ROCK FALCON STUDIO, NASHVILLE (TN)

by Melinda Welsh on December 5, 2020
49
 
Alice In Chains

SPILL LIVE REVIEW: MoPOP PRESENTS: ALICE IN CHAINS @ MUSEUM OF POP CULTURE, SEATTLE (WA)

by Gerrod Harris on December 1, 2020
63
 
Lowest Of The Low

SPILL LIVE REVIEW: LOWEST OF THE LOW @ LEE’S PALACE, TORONTO

by John Graham on November 28, 2020
1297
Tweets by @spillmagazine

SPILL MAGAZINE MENU
  • Home | The Spill Magazine
  • Premieres
  • Album Reviews
  • Books + Movies
  • Features
  • Live Reviews
  • Festivals
  • Portraits
  • News
  • Events
  • Entertainment Headlines
  • Concert Listings
  • Toronto Concert Venues
  • About Us
  • Contests
  • New Music
  • Spill Magazine Contributors
  • TOTD
  • Privacy Policy
  • The Scene Unseen
  • Newsletter

Copyright © 2020 | The Spill Magazine
All Rights Reserved.

TRENDING RIGHT NOW
   
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: PAUL McCARTNEY – McCARTNEY III
544
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: FRONT LINE ASSEMBLY – MECHANICAL SOUL
533
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: ALTER BRIDGE – WALK THE SKY 2.0
498
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: GUIDED BY VOICES – STYLES WE PAID FOR
484
 
SPILL MUSIC PREMIERE: CHURCH OF TREES FEAT. CAROLE POPE – “WORLD’S A BITCH”
439
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: ELTON JOHN – ELTON: JEWEL BOX
331
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: SMALL TOWN TITANS – THE RIDE
325
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: BRIAN ENO – FILM MUSIC: 1976-2020
311
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: GEORGE THOROGOOD AND THE DESTROYERS – LIVE IN BOSTON, 1982: THE COMPLETE CONCERT
310
 
SPILL LIVE REVIEW: LOWEST OF THE LOW @ LEE’S PALACE, TORONTO
297
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: GWAR – SCUMDOGS OF THE UNIVERSE (30th ANNIVERSARY EDITION – REMIXED AND REMASTERED)
291
 
SPILL FEATURE: IT’S ALL IN THE NAME (PART 1) – A CONVERSATION WITH HAWKSLEY WORKMAN
252
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: THE DIRTY NIL – FUCK ART
242
ENTERTAINMENT HEADLINES