Dog in the Sand

Artist: Frank Black and the Catholics
Label: What Are Records
Category: Music

Average customer rating:

Media: Audio CD
Number Of Discs: 1

UPC: 744626004126
EAN: 0744626004126
ASIN: B0000560GU

Release Date: 2001-01-30

Dog in the Sand

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Tracks:

Blast Off
I've Seen Your Picture
St. Francis Dam Disaster
Robert Onion
Stupid Me
Bullet
The Swimmer
Hermaphroditos
I'll Be Blue
Llano Del Rio
If It Takes All Night
Dog In The Sand

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Black Letter Days
Show Me Your Tears
Teenager of the Year
Frank Black and the Catholics
Pistolero

Amazon.com

In theory, there was no reason why Frank Black, a.k.a. Black Francis, shouldn't have carried on making great records after he left the Pixies; after all, he wrote and sang almost all the songs. However, all truly great bands are more than the sum of their parts, and Black's solo career has served largely as a resounding confirmation of this truth. He has had his moments, but has never come close to the towering heights he scaled with his old band. Perhaps by way of grudgingly acknowledging this, <I>Dog in the Sand</I> finds Black re-enlisting Pixies' guitarist Joey Santiago. Santiago, a dazzlingly inventive and versatile player, has been bewilderingly quiet since leaving the Pixies, and seems keen to make up for it here, deploying his formidable range. His contribution to what is certainly Black's best solo album is crucial, from the frenetic power chords of "If It Takes All Night" to the subtle picking of "Robert Onion" to the exuberant solo of "Bullet." Now, if Black can only persuade Kim Deal and David Lowering to come out of retirement as well, he might really be onto something. <I>--Andrew Mueller</I>

Customer Reviews:

Crank it and enjoy.......2005-10-14

Now a month after I belatedly picked up a copy of "Dog in the Sand," I would recommend this CD to anyway who enjoys rock and roll without taking it way too seriously---and who can handle a bit of discomfort, like sitting on a sandy chair. Mr. Black punctuates his songs with disconcerting images ("mouth full of suicide drugs") that twist and linger in one's memory.

The excellent interplay of this strong band keeps things in high gear. The quality of the songs and performances, especially the up-tempo tracks, will keep this CD near the top of my current stack for some time.

There are a couple of stumbles, IMHO, such as Stupid Me which sounds too much like something John Lennon might have concocted, but that's a minor matter considering how many gems are here, from the raucous opening Blast Off, to the compelling St. Francis Dam Disaster, the biting Bullet, the offhanded Llano Del Rio, and the scary Hermaphroditos.

Crank it and enjoy.

Rock with a brain.......2005-04-18

Many other reviewers have said it, but I will too since the analogy is good: throw the Stones into a blender with some steel guitar..add a thesaurus and some obscure literary/cultural references and you've got this album. This one was cut with a back to basics mentality: live, straight to tape without overdubbing.

HIGHLIGHTS:
Far and away, "If It Takes all Night" (which was played on the radio here if not in sections of the U.S. other reviewers are from) is the track here that fully catches fire. "St. Francis Dam Disaster" has the feel (if not the sound) of a folk standard about a killer flood.("A cascade down to Santa Clara way/Near sixty feet high/Now she's a mile wide/It was clear she was going far away/And whole towns were too/A few got lucky in Piru") "I've Seen Your Picture" is a tribute to the ubiquity of commerce with Black doing his best Mick Jagger pout. "Robert Onion" with its line "Makes me feel so tired/Another layer and layers and layer, oh no/Robert can you find your way?/Show me the way to come" is probably self-referencing its inscrutability. It's great wordplay that incorporates mythology (siren, possibly Diana), chess (Zugzwang), and marine lore (Jack-Tar, cinnabar may also be a reference to a coral reef since cinnabar is a reddish mineral). "Bullet" also delves into myth. "Swimmer" apparently derives from a true story of a person headed toward "the latitudes" (Horse latitudes..a calm area of the sea in the Southern hemisphere)..maybe somewhat of a merman as he's adept at "Finding all the edible/Prize of the sea"? Nicely poetic if a bit odd.

LOW POINTS:
"Blast Off" is a mildly enjoyable Stonesish low-key rocker but it goes on WAY past necessity. Get out the razor blade and edit that puppy somewhere around the 5 minute mark. "Dog in the Sand" is a bit weak lyrically.

BOTTOM LINE:
Definitely one that will have you reaching for the dictionary, but some very good tunes here. If you want basic no-frills rock with a bigger IQ behind it, this might be your ticket.

Excellent Record.......2004-03-03

as a long time pixies and frank black fan i this is my favorite frank black album with the catholics (the only one i have not heard yet is "show me your tears"). the songs are engaging and sonically the record does not disappoint.

i also recommend the first two frank black albums prior to joining up with the catholics : "frank black" and "teenager of the year", and, of course, the pixies stuff is brilliant. (note that the cult of ray features the guys dubbed the catholics on the later cd's.)

One of the better recent FB LPs.......2004-01-01

Yes, the Pixies are gone, but Frank still rocks hard. I've spent the last few months catching up on all his releases since his 3rd LP, and this one is one of the better albums. Some of his newer stuff, while technically proficient, and written well, just didn't have that certain thing that's drawn me to his earlier work. This album does. I don't know how to describe it any better than that, except that this is one of my favorites of his work. Hope that helped.

check out the pixies.......2003-08-21

A friend had me listen to "Bullet" and I was hooked. I had never heard FB or the pixies and I immediately got a hold of "Dog" as well as "teenager of the year, "devil's workshop," and "black letter days." Dog in the Sand is the best of these (perhaps b/c it is the shortest with fewer throwaways). Virtually all of the songs are different, but there is still a general cohesiveness.

Listening to FB, I made the logical step of seeing what the Pixies were all about. In a nutshell, I was floored. I picked up Doolittle and found one of the most original, unique sounds I've ever heard (even after the entire alternative music circuit tried to emulate them). I will say that I hate alternative music, which is to say I hate the music played on alt music radio (certainly not all alt music). I have heard that the Pixies spawned "alt rock" and i doubt "alt rock" would exist without them. Regardless, I say all of this to make the point that anyone who enjoys music is doing themselves a disservice by not at least listening to doolittle (the other albums are also great).

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