The Toadies

[Semjaza]

I thought this might be worth posting. I know a few people here for sure like this band and I've noticed a few people who are using the Toadies avatars I made (or maybe they just like how they look, I don't know lol).

Anyway, the Toadies are one of my favorite rock bands. I really doubt they were ever critically acclaimed, but their music is fun and full of energy. That's all that matters sometimes. There's a lot of weird themes in the songs, including some of the best morbid love stories I've heard in rock music (Possum Kingdom, Tyler, Jigsaw Girl). I have a thing for those. The music itself is very tight and I absolutely love the vocals. They have a very unique quality to them.

A lot of people probably know them simply for the song Possum Kingdom. Strangely, that was a b-side for their single and wasn't really meant to be played on radio stations. Somehow it really caught on and their first LP, Rubberneck, wound up going to platinum status. Unfortunately there was a rift in the band and they broke up shortly after.

Six years later they reformed and put out the album Hell Below, Stars Above. Unfortunately the time difference probably hurt them more than it should. Interscope also did very little to promote the band. They wound up completely disbanding afterwards again. A live album came out shortly after, which is pretty good.

I don't know which of the two LPs I prefer. Rubberneck is largely considered better by the majority, but Hell Below Stars Above has some really excellent hard rock songs on it that I really enjoy.

For those interested, the vocalist is part of a new band called The Burden Bros. They've already put out one LP and I believe another one is due this year. They're really damn good, honestly.

Any one else have something to say?

[Shinmaru]

My exposure to The Toadies is limited, but I like what I've heard. Don't have either of their albums, but I do have a few songs here and there. Of what I've heard my favorite song is "Tyler". I love how deceptive the song is. You hear it in the beginning and you're like "Oh, this is a nice love song", but then you listen to the rest of the song...lol. The instrumental part in the middle of the song is a nice touch, too. It gives you a bit of time to stew over the lyrics a bit before the song brings out the big surprise on you lol. Great song.