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Album Details

• Artist: Tommy Stinson
• Album: Village Gorilla Head
• Label: Sanctuary
• Year of Release: 2004
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: dscanland on 2004-10-27

Seeing that the pending Guns N Roses album has been forever delayed (smart-ass comments withheld), Tommy Stinson had a bit of time to sit and record a solo album. This is where the cryptic Village Gorilla Head comes in. For those not in the now, Tommy was instrumental with Paul Westerberg in the highly influential Replacements. He also gave another project a go called Bash and Pop, with mixed results. There are many different sides of Stinson that most of us have never witnessed before. I had never really been exposed to any of Tommy's solo work but with the advent of Village Gorilla Head I have a respect for the man. This album is more diverse than any Westerberg album yet. The album kicks off with a Replacements-esque track called "Without A View". Then we get introduced to the pop Stinson with the amazing "Moment Too Soon". It has a lengthy intro with some somewhat standard fare for verses but man, is it catchy. On "Couldn't Wait" we get a punk version of the guy. It is a fast and loud track showcasing some pretty good musicianship. On "OK" I get a little bit of Blur. On more than one song we treated to the pop side of things. There are some times where he kind of reminds me of Tom Petty like on "Light Of Day". Maybe not quite as much twang but you be the judge. I think former band-mate, Westerberg needs to take a look at what kind of diversity can be delivered in an album. Village Gorilla Head may take a couple listens to really get into but once you have become familiar with Tommy Stinson's style, you won't be able to put it down.

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