This Can't Be Life

Last updated
This Can't Be Life
This Can't Be Life.jpg
Studio album by
Wild Colonials
Released1996
Studio
Genre Alternative, folk rock
Length45:07
Label DGC [1]
Producer Tony Berg, John Porter
Wild Colonials chronology
Fruit of Life
(1994)		This Can't Be Life
(1996)		Reel Life, Vol. 1
(2000)

This Can't Be Life is the second album by the American band Wild Colonials, released in 1996. [2] [3] The first single was "Charm", which was an alternative radio hit. [4] The band supported the album with a North American tour that included stints with Los Lobos and Chalk FarM. [5] [6] [7] They also headlined the second stage at the inaugural 1997 Lilith Fair. [8]

Contents

Production

The album was produced by Tony Berg and John Porter. [9] The album cover used artwork from a lithograph from the 1700s, which was discovered on a postcard. [9] Bandmember Scott Roewe played a penny whistle, melodica, and didgeridoo, among other instruments. [10] Rickie Lee Jones contributed to the album. [11] "Want" is about the death of singer Angela McCluskey's mother. [12] McCluskey had a practice of starting to compose songs during year-end holiday seasons. [13]

Cover Artwork

The cover image is from a 1917 German postcard. The sleeve design and photos were taken by Wild Colonials' violinist Paul Cantelon's brother Lee Cantelon. After a photo session at Rickie Lee Jones's house, Lee noticed the postcard on Rickie's kitchen wall.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [14]
Los Angeles Times Star full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [15]
San Jose Mercury News Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [16]

The Philadelphia Inquirer deemed the album a "catchy, Eastern-flavored second effort." [17] The Los Angeles Times wrote that "McCluskey sings messages for the lovelorn and the bitter over sounds that run from jazzy torch epics to the vaguely Middle Eastern." [15] The San Jose Mercury News noted the "same low-range vocal ground" as 10,000 Maniacs. [16] The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette dismissed This Can't Be Life as "fuzzy acoustic vaguely Irish folk jazz." [18]

The Orange County Register advised: "Imagine an Out of Time-era R.E.M. fronted by a raving mad Deborah Harry and you begin to get the idea of the punch Wild Colonials can pack." [12] The Star-Ledger stated that "McCluskey's husky, intelligent, sultry voice is the right vehicle to carry the band's jagged, edgy, Celtic-flavored alternative folk-rock that's as much Roxy Music as it is 10,000 Maniacs." [19]

The Oregonian listed This Can't Be Life among the 10 best albums of 1996. [20]

Track listing

All songs written by the Wild Colonials

  1. "This Misery" – 4:13
  2. "Spirit" – 4:50
  3. "Coy" – 3:44
  4. "Wake Up Sad" – 5:05
  5. "Charm" – 3:17
  6. "Want" – 5:14
  7. "If" – 4:05
  8. "Blue" – 5:36
  9. "Different" – 3:54
  10. "Childhood" – 5:49

Personnel

With

Production

References

  1. ↑ Moon, Tom (23 Aug 1996). "AND THEN THERE'S . . ". FEATURES WEEKEND. The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 19.
  2. ↑ "Wild Colonials Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic.
  3. ↑ Maestri, Cathy (August 18, 1996). "It's been a tough climb for mountain show". The Press-Enterprise. p. E3.
  4. ↑ Ehrbar, Joe (10 Jan 1997). "WILD COLONIALS FIND TOURING ALL THE TIME FOSTERS SUCCESS". Weekend. The Spokesman-Review. p. 2.
  5. ↑ Pareles, Jon (30 Sep 1996). "In Performance: Unabashed Sincerity". The New York Times. p. C12.
  6. ↑ Rosen, Steven (November 1, 1996). "Bands get into rhythm of playing Denver and Boulder". The Denver Post. p. F17.
  7. ↑ Renzhofer, Martin (January 17, 1997). "Colonials: Wild Music, From Scotland To Corea". The Salt Lake Tribune. p. D14.
  8. ↑ Mehle, Michael (July 11, 1997). "FAIREST OF THE FAIR". Rocky Mountain News. p. 18D.
  9. 1 2 Shuster, Fred (August 9, 1996). "WILD COLONIALS GET BUSY". Los Angeles Daily News. p. L21.
  10. ↑ Elkins, Elizabeth (October 11, 1996). "Scottish band likes to thrive on wild mix". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. p. P4.
  11. ↑ Renzhofer, Martin (September 15, 1996). "CD Reviews". The Salt Lake Tribune. p. E3.
  12. 1 2 Wener, Ben (August 23, 1996). "Wild Colonials 'This Can't Be Life'". Orange County Register. p. F54.
  13. ↑ Healy, James (December 19, 1996). "Glasgow native finds her singing voice, again, in Hollywood". Entertainment. The San Diego Union-Tribune. p. 12.
  14. ↑ "Wild Colonials – This Can't Be Life Album Reviews, Songs & More | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.
  15. 1 2 Appleford, Steve (29 Sep 1996). "Wild Colonials, 'This Can't Be Life'". Calendar. Los Angeles Times. p. 94.
  16. 1 2 Kava, Brad (October 4, 1996). "HALF OF HUMP DAY LOOKS FOR SOME GEMS AMID THE JUNK". Eye. San Jose Mercury News. p. 19.
  17. ↑ Beckley, Fred (13 Sep 1996). "WILD COLONIALS". FEATURES WEEKEND. The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 19.
  18. ↑ Martin, Philip (October 11, 1996). "Wild Colonials, This Can't Be Life". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. p. 19W.
  19. ↑ Horowitz, Ben (September 23, 1996). "Wild Colonials are anything but with a room half-empty". Today. The Star-Ledger. p. 25.
  20. ↑ Foyston, John (December 29, 1996). "EAR TO THE YEAR". The Oregonian. p. E1.
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