Track Listing

1. To the Dogs or Whoever
2. Mind's Eye
3. Right Moves
4. Temptation of Adam
5. Open Doors
6. Rumors
7. Edge of the World
8. Wait for Love
9. Real Long Distance
10. Next to the Last Romantic
11. Moons
12. Still Beating
13. Empty Hearts
14. Wait for Love (You Know You Will)

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #95538 in Music
• Released on: 2007-10-01
• Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

Wait for it (you know you will)
Fortunately Mr Ritter is prolific enough that he doesn't make us wait around for long before coming back with a fresh bunch of lovingly created tunes. The last album ('The Animal Years') is a pretty tough act to follow, and if that record was a reflective piece, 'Conquests' is definitely a manifesto. Ritter talks of Gigantic Orchestras (big enough to sink the Titanic), making 'Right moves' and getting that someone in your 'Mind's Eye' and making it feel like you have them in the sights of a high powered cupid's bow!

This record sounds very much like Josh is staking out his corner of the over-crowded male songwriter homestead. He's starting playing piano here in a very heavy, rhythmic way which has created a great driving beat under a few of the tunes (like the wonderfully catchy 'Right Moves' as seen on Jools Holland). It sounds like he's been listening to a little less Bob Dylan and a little more White Stripes or Jim White.

The draw back of this is that the production hasn't compensated enough for this and often his voice is lost in the mix. This is a shame because his superb lyrics are swamped by the arrangement and also because his voice is just getting better with age. There are one or two odd choices of effect on his vocals at times ('Open Door', 'Wait for love') which detract further from the clarity.

'Mind's Eye' is worth a mention as a stand out track, but also because the opening riff fools you into thinking you're listening to The Clash's 'London Calling'. A good example then of Ritter's genius - while there are no discernable hooks on first listen, there is something so organic and so ingrained about the melodies and the rhyming lyrical couplets he uses that you find them stuck in your brain for literally days afterward.

A good record, and one that you get the sense he needed to make, but a little nicer production next time would show off his massive talents a little more fairly. If you're looking to buy your first Josh Ritter record, try 'The Animal Years' or 'Hello Starling' first to see the progression. This here remains thinking people's music!

A matter of taste
I'm in two minds about this one.

I couldn't get into it at first, listening to it on my iPod, so I put the CD on my hi-fi and listened to it properly, and loud. It has to be loud.

There's a lot of stuff in here. A lot of words (listen carefully), a lot of ideas, and references, and cleverness. Some of it sounds really new, and yet some of it sounds really familiar, though it's hard to say why. `Mind's Eye' and `Right Moves' sound like songs you already know. It's not that they're derivative, I don't think, they just sound familiar in some way.

Then there are tracks like `Open Door', which I really like, that sounds new and interesting, with its emphasis on rhythm and repetitive melody creating a great effect. A lot of these songs major on effect.

And a lot rely on a driving rhythm section. And a cracking chorus. You just know these songs are going to go down so well with the student crowd at gigs where they like to sing along at the tops of their voices. It's almost like an album designed for that crowd. It'll be great live.

So many catchy choruses and lyrics too! You'll be singing half the songs to yourself within a couple of days. In so many ways it's really great.

So I feel it's a bit unfair to criticise it when it's just a matter of taste. All I'm going to say is that, obviously brilliant as it is in so many ways, and as much as I like Josh Ritter's other albums, I just don't see me listening to this much. The reason is simple: I like Josh's melodic slow and mid-tempo songs the most. Usually they're the best songs on his albums. But on this one, the uptempo stuff is the best stuff by far (the slow songs are even a bit weak I think). It's just not totally my taste.

Best Josh Ritter so far
Very good, it will probably end in everybody's best of the year lists. Kicks off with 'To the dogs or whoever' arguably the best song in the set,
if not his best ever: a splendid lyric loaded with imagery and great music.
The next three songs keep the level very high, providing one of the the best lyrcs with the apocalyptic ballad 'The temptation of Adam'

Then things change a little in the middle of the record. There is one intranscendent instrumental, a couple of so-so songs, including a
first version of 'Wait for love', that should have been left off,

But things raise up again for a magnificent end with 'Empty heart' and the right version of 'Wait for love'

I would not say that this is a major departure from his previous style, the songs have a more lively feel and there are more uptempo numbers,
and yes there is more electric guitar. Not enuogh to call this Josh Ritter's experimental record or whatever, only a welcomed step forward.

If he had selected the ten best tracks and left out the rest this would almost be perfect... Loses one star for unwanted quantity, but it is my
favourite Ritter record so far.

Also ... the extra CD is quite a let down with nothing remarkable. Better buy the regular CD if you are not a completist.