Harsh Light of Day [Limited Edition]

Editorial Reviews
Album Details
Limited Edition Three Flap Digipak, Including Special Artwork with Matte Finish and Uncoated Paper Booklet. And as If That's Not Enough, There's also the Added Benefit of Three Extra Bonus Tracks. 'this Way (Live),' 'emotional' and 'love Doesn't Kill You.'

Tracks:

This Is Not My Life
You're An Ocean
Goodbye
Love Is Expensive And Free
Vampires
Wind Me Up
Morning Star
Time
Dark Street
Funny How It Fades Away
Don't Give Up On Me
Whatever Gets You On

Amazon.com

Call it the gradual acceleration of Fastball. The Austin-based trio's debut, Make Your Mama Proud, was mostly forgettable, anonymous alternative pop. Their sophomore release, All the Pain Money Can Buy, upped the ante with more confident songwriting and a bona fide classic in "The Way." Album number three is The Harsh Light of Day, by no means a classic but another step forward. The first single, "You're an Ocean," benefits from a sky-high hook and the infectious piano pounding of Billy "Get Back" Preston. Speaking of the Beatles, the influence of the lads from Liverpool is pronounced on Harsh Light's production flourishes; the band opens up to heavier use of strings, vibes, and lighthearted steel guitar. Highlights include the slightly Southern-fried ballad "Don't Give Up on Me," "Wind Me Up" (which sounds like a haunted, forgotten Elvis Costello tune), and the jaunty opener of "This Is Not My Life." --Jason Josephes

Customer Reviews:

Funny How It Sticks With You.......2006-05-23

Once again I'm very late in saying what should be said. This is easily one of the hundred greatest rock albums ever. Fastball is THE greatest band you never heard of. Most people hear their songs on the radio and think they're hearing someone else. They think, Oh that's an Elvis Costello song or Tom Petty or Eagles but it Fastball. The way you tell is it's usually better.

This album shows there songwriting genius. Luckily someone already committed sacrlege so I will reiterate. Tony Scalzo and Miles Zuniga are the Lennon-McCartney of this era. There's not a single false note on this album. Ever song is brilliantly clever without being pretenious in anyway and where as almost every band, even the great ones, try to unsuccessfully break out of their one sound and represent as many different genres as possible, Fastball does succeed and seemingly effortlessly.

Often the best movies and songs take time to warm up to and many that are immediately accessible wear thin fast. All the cuts here have the amazing trait of being immediately accessible and never wearing thin. In fact their songwriting has the trait of sounding familiar but not like some other song. It's called great songwriting. Become familiar with the two greatest tunesmiths working today and if you get the chance to see them live make sure you don't miss it. Plus they're really personable, cool guys. Well, Tony anyway. Oh lighten up Smiley.

This album is a ten out of five. You can't go wrong buying any Fastball album though.

Great "catchy" tunes album!!!.......2005-07-19

I absolutely love this album. All the songs are great to listen to and I know almost all the lyrics by heart. This is a great band. I was hooked with their music when I bought "All the Pain Money can't buy." That album also had great songs, but this album has unforgettable songs. From start to finish, It's great. These songs are great pick you up after a hard days work, which is what "Funny how it fades away" says. They undeniably have a Beatlesque sound from songs like "Goodbye" and especially "Love is expensive and free." The way the lead guitarist, Tony Scalzo, and the bass guitarist, Miles Zuniga, alternates lead vocals is what makes both albums great. I also recommend getting the limited edition of this album which has a great live recording of "The Way."

Soft Side of Fastball.......2004-11-22

Fastball's Harsh Light of Day is the second album I've listened to by the group from Austin, Texas. This was a much-anticipated album for me after listening to All The Pain Money Can Buy. This albumen didn't quite live up to all of that hype. Fastball seems to have reached a mellower state after All The Pain Money Can Buy, perhaps they bought too much pain? The song "You're An Ocean" was good, but definitely wasn't the Fastball I had expected. I was looking for much more like "This Is Not My Life", instead of the pop sounding album I got. I liked the album, it just wasn't the Fastball I wanted.

Overlooked and under appreciated.......2004-08-14

Not a perfect album. . . but a great one. At times the production is a little intrusive, but the songs rise above. Great songs from both Tony and Miles from start to finish. Do yourself a favor. Do yourself a favor and grab this one today.

BUY IT!!!!.......2004-08-02

Honestly, I can't say enough for this AWESOME cd. This has been said in other reviews, but Fastball does have a sound that can be described as Modern-Day Beatles. All of the songs have their own character and all speak directly to my heart. I know it sounds corny, but I have a close relationship with this cd, now. It is amazing how greatly this band matures with time. I will leave you with this: Buy It!!!!!!

The Harsh Light Of Day (Limited Edition)

Average customer rating:

WOW
Good American music
These guys can do it ALL!!!
This is NOT Fastballs best.
Pop is Not Dead

The Harsh Light Of Day (Limited Edition)
Fastball
Manufacturer: Hollywood
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

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Similar Items:

Make Your Mama Proud
Keep Your Wig On
You're An Ocean
All the Pain Money Can Buy

ASIN: B00004YB5H
Release Date: 2000-09-19

Tracks:

This Is Not My Life
You're An Ocean
Goodbye
Love Is Expensive and Free
Vampires
Wind Me Up
Morning Star
Time
Dark Street
Funny How It Fades Away
Don't Give Up On Me
Whatever Gets You On
The Way (Live In Australia) (Bonus Track)
Emotional (Previously Unreleased) (Bonus Track)
Love Doesn't Kill You (Previously Unreleased Demo) (Bonus Track)

Amazon.com

Customer Reviews:

WOW.......2002-03-07

I have had this CD in the limited edition since the first day and it is still my favorite cd. Fastball is the best band ever and I will buy any fastball stuff within a reasonable price. I am really looking foward to their next cd!!!

Good American music.......2001-04-01

Well who here besides me is worried about the state of american music? Well i care even though i'm not american. If you are looking for some good music to hear i suggest picking up a copy of fastball's newest cd. They do everything right in this album. The only flaw with this album is it's been done before. You can hear a heavy influence from past musicians mostly from the sixties, but hey the sixties were the best time for music. All the tracks range from alternative style rock to catchy pop. I'm glad i found out about fastball,because i was tired of listening to korn and limp bizkit. Also check out their prior release because it's just as good.

These guys can do it ALL!!!.......2000-12-15

Their versatility with so many different styles of music is truly amazing! From the modern/alternative sounds of "This is Not My Life" and "Goodbye" to irresistable 60s-pop in "Dark Street" to kick-butt classic power-riff rockers "Morning Star" and "Time" to southern rock "Don't Give Up On Me" to Mariachi-flavored "Love is Expensive & Free" to the beatiful, haunting ballad "Vampires" etc. they experiment (successfully!) with just about every genre of music out there. And you still get the great deal of 2 bands for the price of one, since Tony Scalzo and Miles Zuniga sound so different from each other. They each have some great strengths to offer. I'd say Tony is the better singer and he's also great at writing clever, catchy lyrics. But Miles is the one with the real sense of adventure when it comes to trying different styles of music, and his cryptic lyrics always keep you wondering what he's really saying.

Overall, the biggest difference between this and their previous 5-star "All the Pain Money Can Buy" is that this one is more of a "Total Album" experience. ATPMCB was so dominated by the incredible "The Way" that it took me a while to get past that one to learn to appreciate the rest of the CD. With "Harsh Light" I can't really pick any particular favorite so I have to listen to the whole CD repeatedly instead of playing one track 3-4X before listening to the rest of it.

FASTBALL IS THE GREATEST BAND AROUND!!!!

This is NOT Fastballs best........2000-10-17

It seems so many reviewers think "The Harsh Light of Day" is so much better than all their other albums. Its an excellent collection of vintage sounding pop songs, but it doesnt come near as good as their Sophmore release "All the Pain Money can Buy". Whereas on ATPMCB every song was amazing and melodic, I somtimes find myself skipping tracks on the new release. On the upside their are the good songs like the super upbeat "Your and Ocean", with some great Southern piano by none other than Billy "Get Back" Preston. Also there is "This is not my Life", "Love is Expensive and Free", and "Funny How it Fades Away." The collectors edition features a pretty dull live version of "The Way" , but the two unreleased tracks will definitely get your foot tapping. It also features a cool book.

Pop is Not Dead.......2000-09-27

Fastball could be a throwback to 10-15 years ago, when bands actually matured and improved album after album. When compared to their previous releases, "The Harsh Light of Day" is a lot more consistent. There is still some filler on the album, but the gems far more than make up for it.

At its best, Fastball delivers really well crafted pop music. Although the Beatles influences are present and clearly audible, they are filtered through the best of 80's pop (think "Imperial Bedroom" or "Punch the Clock" era Elvis Costello, Squeeze and Crowded House).