Posted on: January 16, 2009 Posted by: anfnewsacct Comments: 0

It would be a disservice to say that Amor Fati was a band that did not try out other styles. However, it would also be a disservice to say that Amor Fati is always an act that knows what it is doing during “Love Fate”. During the first three tracks, there are three distinctly different styles. All three of the styles have rock as some sort of a background, but they just provide listeners with three different conceptions of Amor Fati at a time on the disc where there needs to be some consolidation of their sound. Each of the songs on “Love Fate” is interesting at some point, but much like Lonely H, there does not seem to be much substantive that listeners can dig into and take for themselves.

During tracks like “Every Lonely Day”, the arrangements are beautiful, but there is nothing that is truly compelling here, no reason to stick intently by the record player and wait for what Amor Fati still has in store for their listeners. “Green” is another track that tries to bring Amor Fati into another style. In this track, hints of Dire Straits, Roy Orbison, and even sixties rock all make an appearance in a track that seems more like Amor Fati is playing by the numbers instead of breaking free and forging out on their own. ”Automatic Mary” is done along the same line, but the slightly more noisy guitar work done during the track moves the band a few years forward, to the days of the MC5 and The Stooges. The song has a little more life to it than previous songs on the disc, and it is what the band needs. This track, which is stuck right in the middle of the track, can either make or break the disc.

This grungy early rock sound continues for “Lights Were All Broken”, but even the presence of a bass chugging along cannot break the track from the same “it’s been done before” sound that hamstrung songs like “Green”. The band has talent in creating tracks that would be amenable to the styles that they are trying to emulate, but Amor Fati just does not put enough of their own sound into this disc. There are a number of other retro rock acts that do this style better than Amor Fati; skip out on this disc and buy one from The Raconteurs, if you so desire.

Top Tracks: Lights Were All Broken, Su Desierto

Rating: 3.3/10

[JMcQ]

Amor Fati – Love Fate / 2006 Self / 12 Tracks / http://www.amorfati.com /

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