Somewhere Under Wonderland

by Counting Crows

Overview

By the time of Somewhere Under Wonderland, it had been a long, rocky road between albums for alternative folk-rock superstars Counting Crows. Plenty of music had come and gone since 2008's emotionally divided concept album Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings -- a few live albums, a record of covers, and countless shows on multiple tours. These recordings all fell short of presenting that much in the way of new original music from the band, possibly due in part to the turbulent years that followed Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings, an album that would be their last for long-time label Geffen and immediately precede a stretch of personal loss and struggle for Crows singer/songwriter Adam Duritz. Despite a long period of upheaval and heavy changes, the nine songs that make up Somewhere Under Wonderland find the band sounding relaxed, optimistic, and even somewhat giddy at times. The record eases into being with the eight-minute long first single "Palisades Park," a suite that glides through different atmospheres, lingering with the same dreamlike fluidity and colorful observational storytelling that Joni Mitchell displayed on The Hissing of Summer Lawns. The lengthy tune breezes by, shifting through Beatles-esqe organ tones, tempo changes, and Duritz's signature characters and poetic scenes. The largely acoustic "Earthquake Driver" sounds stuck somewhere between Thin Lizzy's energetic juvenilia and Paul Simon's soul-searching wordplay circa Graceland. The band doesn't stick with one mood for too long over the course of the album, offering Neil Young-inspired guitar rootsiness on standout track "Scarecrow," gentle acoustic meandering and folksy vocal harmonies on "God of Ocean Tides," and an upbeat country-rock ramble on "Cover Up the Sun." All these stylistic detours fall under a very wide umbrella that makes Somewhere Under Wonderland distinctively Counting Crows. Duritz's raspy voice and lucid, lyrical stories always hold just a hint of desperation, and even decades into a staggered career, these new tunes can't help but feel like part of a larger narrative that began during the band's '90s glory days but finds further, greater refinement here. ~ Fred Thomas

Product Details

Release Date:	09/02/2014
Label:	Capitol / Virgin Emi
UPC:	0602537919291

Tracks

1. Palisades Park
2. Earthquake Driver
3. Dislocation
4. God of Ocean Tides
5. Scarecrow
6. Elvis Went to Hollywood
7. Cover Up the Sun
8. John Appleseed's Lament
9. Possibility Days

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Counting Crows   Primary Artist
Dan Vickrey   Guitar (Electric),Guitar (12 String Electric),Guitar,Guitar (Acoustic)
David Bryson   Guitar (Tenor),Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric),Guitar (12 String Electric)
John Paul Roney   Vocals (Background)
Eric Hillman   Vocals (Background)
Brian Holl   Vocals (Background)
Brian Deck   Glockenspiel,Handclapping
Adam Duritz   Piano,Vocals
Jim Bogios   Drums,Percussion,Handclapping
Charlie Gillingham   Piano,Mellotron,Arp Odyssey,Vox Continental
David Immerglueck   Mandolin,Pedal Steel,Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric)
Rev. Curtis Watson   Trumpet
Millard Powers   Guitar (Bass)

Technical Credits

Brian Deck   Mixing,Engineer,Producer
David Bryson   Group Member
Shawn Dealey   Engineer
Jason Butler   Assistant Engineer
Kabir Hermon   Engineer,Assistant Engineer
Andrew Genger   Management
Eric Hillman   Vocal Engineer
Albert Hernandez   Assistant Engineer
Felipe Molina   Paintings,Art Conception
Adam Duritz   Composer,Lyricist,Group Member
Jim Bogios   Group Member
Dan Vickrey   Composer,Group Member
Greg Calbi   Mastering
Charlie Gillingham   Group Member
David Immerglueck   Composer,Group Member
Millard Powers   Composer