The Caesars-Paper Tigers
The Caesars are…
Cesar Vidal-Lead Singer
Joakim Ahlund-Guitars
David Lindqvist-Organ
Nino Keller-Drums
Don’t ask me how to pronounce any of those. Anyway, The Caesars are a group that have been around since early 2000 in Sweden, but just recently came overseas to America where they enjoyed success with their single from Paper Tigers, “Jerk It Out.”
While in Sweden, The Caesars were known as Caesars Palace and made three albums, each one with “Jerk It Out” on them except for their first one. In the words of Joakim Ahlund, “I think we had about 20 fans in Sweden after our first album,” one of the reasons why they came over here to the USA. Onto the actual review now, which I am going to do while actually listening to the album again.
1)
Spirit- The first track on an album is always immensely important, and needs to deliver. This one does just that. It starts out quietly with a very Pete Townshend style guitar riff. One of their main influences must be The Who, because plenty of their songs have riffs like that of Mr. Townshend. Over the riff, Cesar Vidal comes in singing some quiet lyrics. The song goes on quietly for a little longer, then the drums kick in and it really starts rolling. The guitar sound gets a little more distorted, and the whole mix gets louder. From there on, it’s a solid rock song. The barely audible organ ambience in the background adds to this songs quality greatly. It ends with some feedback.
5/5
2)
It’s Not The Fall That Hurts- This song starts out with another Who style guitar part. Then the organ kicks in, playing the melody of the vocals in the chorus, which is extremely catchy and cool. It slowly builds up to the chorus, the best part of the song, with some goofy lyrics (It’s not the fall that hurts; it’s when you hit the ground). It then launches into a quiet bridge, with backup vocalists singing “Fall fall fall fall fall fall falling apart.” After that the backup vocals continue as it goes into the chorus again. My only complaint on this one is that it can get a little repetitive after a few listenings. It leads right into…
4/5
3)
Out There- This song starts with some feedback, then a drum fill, then the vocals kick in. This song has some catchy little parts to it, those being the organ part between verses and the vocal melody. Once again, the song can get very repetitive after a couple times through the same verse. Or chorus. I have trouble telling which one is which in this song. Organ ambience helps here too.
4/5
4)
Jerk It Out- Here we go. My favorite song on this album by a mile, “Jerk It Out” is just the absolute perfect song. It starts off with a catchy organ riff, the guitar playing staccato chords in the background. The vocals come in with the drums, and make this song my vote for song of the year so far. In the middle of it is a drum-beat driven techno style bridge, with the organ driving away on the melody. I’m not sure what the lyrics mean, they mostly consist of “And you jerk it out” and “Jerk it out.” But you know what? I don’t care. There’s a guitar solo at the end, and makes this a great song.
5/5
5)
May The Rain- Another song that starts off with an organ line, the other instruments all come in in unison after it. A very catchy chorus, with Cesar singing only “na na na,” makes for a great song in every way. Another great song off of this album? That’s right. I know it might sound “fanboyish,” but I assure you, these songs are all really that good.
4.5/5
6)
My Heart Is Breaking Down- This one starts with creepy noise, then goes into a very The Clash style guitar riff. That does not make this a punk song in any way. I’m not sure The Caesars could make a punk song. Once again, a catchy chorus and a little guitar solo in the middle plus an organ solo make this song very high-quality. This one gets stuck in my head quite a bit.
4/5
7)
Paper Tigers- The title track of the album starts off with a very nice guitar line. Cesar Vidal sings very high for his range, and a tambourine in the background make this songs intro pretty cool. This is a slow song, and after six fast ones it’s a nice break. Unlike the rest of the songs on the album, this one is not very memorable in any way. It’s still a nice, slow-paced song to start off the second half of the album with. My only complaint is that it doesn’t change much from the intro throughout the entire song.
3.5/5
8)
Your Time Is Near- This song starts off with some quick weird noise, then moves into a nice, clean guitar riff with some organ in the background that sounds an awful lot like one of those baby pianos. That keeps up for the whole song, with a little acoustic interlude. Overall, this song is another slow, melodic song. Once again, not as catchy as some of its predecessors, but still pretty cool. There’s also a guitar solo in the middle of the song that really doesn’t fit in with the rest of the song. Ends with creepy noise.
4/5
9)
Throwaway- Starts off with a Kinks style riff and…Hand claps!! Perfect use of them, too. This song, while not as slow as the previous two, is still slower paced. It’s better than Paper Tigers and Your Time Is Near, though. It’s catchy as anything and has a fun guitar solo towards the end. Joakim’s solos may not be that good, but they’re still cool.
4/5
10)
Winter Song- The other standout track of this album, Winter Song really gives you the feeling of winter, with Cesar Vidal using lyrics with lots of long “essss” sounds in them, and the organ is playing some chords that sound like ice. If ice had a sound. Then there’s a violin solo ( I think) towards the end. This song really builds up in to one awesome wall of sound, to use Phil Spector’s terms. Very good song.
5/5
11)
We Got To Leave- A very cheesy 50’s style organ riff plays throughout this song, but that just adds to the appeal. More hand claps too. Woohoo! Another extremely catchy song, with the guitar kept to a minimum and the organ taking over. Overall, it’s OK.
3.5/5
12)
Soulchaser- Starts with the organ again, played through a Leslie speaker. Another song with some catchy hooks and overall good display of songwriting ability. Not as good as some of their other songs on here, but it’s just fine. It ends with an organ solo played over some distorted guitar chords, then goes into an almost a capella section. (only the drums are playing). Good song.
3.5/5
13)
Good And Gone- Starts out with some Hendrix inspired backwards playing, then goes into a solid single-string riff. A very cool intro leads into a very catchy verse and chorus. There is no end to the catchiness of this album. Excellent backing vocals, also. A fun song and a great ending to an amazing album. This song also ends with a really creepy noise.
5/5
Songs To Keep On Itunes
1) Jerk It Out
2) Winter Song
3) Good And Gone
In conclusion, this album is definitely spending your $15 on, or however much it costs. With no bad songs, and three very pleasing songs, Paper Tigers is a great album full of tracks that will stay in your head for days. Despite the very average lyrics, these songs are full of energy.
Pros:
1) Catchy, Catchy, Catchy!
2) Good songwriting makes for good songs.
3) Though the instrumentalist lack skills, the songs still sound good.
Cons:
1) Some songs are somewhat repetitive.
2) No excuse for the mediocre lyrics.
