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| GratitudeGratitude2005 Atlantic 
  Review by: Aubin See others by this writer ![[staff]](/images/icons/staffsticker.gif){kind=icon}
Gratitude (link) Only registered users can post comments 
 
Published on March 8th 2005
I saw Jonah Matranga open for the Weakerthans here in Toronto about two years ago. At that point, he was still playing under his onelinedrawing moniker, and I can honestly say that he was a fairly earnest and enjoyable performer. And while he certainly seems to invoke the undeserved ire of the more cynical among us, I found him fairly personable and a decent live musician. Because he had such a short set time available to him, he even offered to play for anyone who would listen out in front of the venue. This seemed particularly kind of him and it certainly gave me the impression that he was a nice person who genuinely enjoyed playing music for people.
¹ - Not so much unconfirmed as completely inaccurate. I made it up ok? Please login or register to post comments. What are the benefits of having a Punknews.org account?
interestingly enough, as soon as i posted my last comment on this record, i got an email saying gratitude broke up. hmmm...that was fast i love how quick people get so caught up in who's punk and who's not! the fact is, this is by far the best record i've heard all year. just saw them on tour with norm from texas is the reason, shelter, fountainhead, etc. and they were unbelievable. there was a time when punk wasn't so much about your clothes or the chords you played, but the message and the emotion. they convey it better then most these days. This isn't as bad as the critics would have you believe. I'm not saying its the best disc of the year, but definitely worthwhile. I say check it out if you can... good review. I have to admit, i was pretty excited about this record, as I really like onelinedrawing. unfortunatly, it just doesn't deliver. here's hoping the next album will be better... am i the only person that hated onelinedrawing? i saw the guy play 2 or 3 times and each time his guitar was out of tune and he was shrieking like a girl. i don't know, maybe i just dont get it? This review is right on the nose, but what it fails to point out is that Jonah's gained his loyal following by pushing his music where the mainstream wasn't by being vulnerable and experimental in his lyrics and music. "Always new" is his best example of this, see him live before you say he sucks or is a sellout. I think Jonah may have become to comofortable with this one for some of us. I still love you Jonah, I just miss R2 and your more experimental years. Sincerely, Bryan (screw the fake overdramatic names by the way) "Brian get a better staff!!!!" While I was reading the post a few below (all the time wondering when the word "so" added multiple vowels, I couldn't help but picturing a young Hillary Duff-esque girl running up to me after her purchase from the "staff picks" section of hot topic and telling me this was the new face of alternative music. what is "music"? one person's wolf eyes is another's kelly clarkson You people have no clue what music is .... This is SOOO much better than Far. The first two songs on the CD are just incredible! The song writing is sooo good, i cant believe that anyone could even put this in the same league as Far. Just cause its not "hard" or have stupid lyrics like the other crap this site trys to make everyone believe is "the most amazing thing ever" doesnt mean is its not an awesome CD. "I'm tired of making Crumb references whenever there's a Gratitude item, but, Christ, am I the only person who liked that band?" I feel the same way Adam does about this album about everything he's done after Far. Far is amazing though. this review is pretty dead on. an okay release, but totalyl forgettable I have heard all about how nice Jonah and how he does this and that after shows, etc. I won't disagree on that point. But during his time with o.l.d. he was pretty much intolerable on stage. I'm not sure if I have ever seen anyone pat themselves on the back more onstage (for the two times i saw him) under the guise of "i know there are a lot of haters out there who think what i am doing up here is stupid", etc. it was non-stop, and just simply self-congratulatory. jonah's sets are always too damn long. when i saw him at the scene a couple summers back most of the crowd ended up leaving before he was done because he just kept going. that's happened when i've seen him other times too. (except when he's not headlining) Haven't heard this yet. dont really want to. and everybody always talks about how nice Jonah is. Every time I've ever spoken with him he hasn't been that nice. whatever. I'm tired of making Crumb references whenever there's a Gratitude item, but, Christ, am I the only person who liked that band? It must say something about the priorities of the 'scene' when most of the comments here are along the lines of: jonah just knows how to write a good pop rock song I don't like this CD at all but Jonah needed to make some money sometime. My only question is "is Jonah really vegan?" He claims to be veggie and does promotions for Peta2, but in one of his recent site updates he mentions that he was "eating chicken soup..." I'll give this band a year before they break up. Jonah is notoriously hard to work with, and once their targeted mainstream success eludes them (and it will...), I doubt the guys will want to put up with their frontman anymore. agreed. i'm not huge on this record, but jonah deserves whatever success may come. jonah deserves all the success that gratitude will bring him. this guy has played countless house shows and has paid his dues a dozen times over. I think the comment was geared towards eventual college, you retard. and before all that sellout bullshit starts to fly, remember this guy is in his mid-30's, and hasn't exactly made a fortune in his career...if you had a daughter you would have to eventually put through school, i'm sure you'd do the exact same thing I can't wait to pick this up at lunch. I've been listening to the 4 streamed songs at www.gratitudemusic.com for over a month now. This is way too boring for Jonah. and before all that sellout bullshit starts to fly, remember this guy is in his mid-30's, and hasn't exactly made a fortune in his career...if you had a daughter you would have to eventually put through school, i'm sure you'd do the exact same thing i love jonah , and "this is the part" is a decent song, but for the most part this is an entirely forgettable album. very disappointing. besides the already pointed out mistake of thinking new end original predates one line drawing, I agree with the review. correction: he was doing onelinedrawing long before new end original. Best footnote ever. "complete with rumours of vast amounts of money and unconfirmed reports of hookers and copious amounts of blow¹." i'm a big fan of far, onelinedrawing and new end original, and this album really disapointed me. it's lacking the flair and the heart that made me love jonah's other work. it's not bad by any means, but it's pretty mediocre. that said, "last" is a really good song. that hook on the single is sooo good though. I wouldn't mind hearing that on a sunny day one bit. Kirby was right. I really enjoyed the review Aubin, but I have a feeling I won't be buying this today, meh. i told all yall this shit sucked a long time ago An album by someone who has been trying to be a rock star for so long that it's hard to view as anything but an attempt to get famous. just take it for what it is...a fun, solid rock record I do want to point out that I really enjoyed Visitor. This is just pop crap. This dude sucks. I heard this record today, and coming from the perspective of someone who's never really listened to any of this guy's past bands: yawn. This is "nice" music that's ultimately devoid of character or any really distinguishing qualities. |
