Pretzel Logic

 

    Pretzel Logic really feels like the band is just spinning their wheels for the runtime. The album overall is more of the same from Countdown to Ecstasy but not quite as good. The music still generally has that Steely Dan smooth flow for a lot of the songs and the performance and presentation are still good, but it feels a little generic compared to what else the band had already made by this point. The structure of the songs are all same-y and unambitious, with most of them being characterized by simple alternating verse-chorus with a bridge in the middle. The band doesn't try to experiment or branch out too much, but on the few songs that they do I found it to be good and wish that they had maybe tried more weird stuff here since I think that it probably would've worked well and given the album more of a distinct identity. The instrumentation is strong as is though, and has some nice variety between tracks. Pretzel Logic is overall a fine album that I enjoyed but it's not the greatest thing in its niche.

    Highlights: Any Major Dude Will Tell You, East St. Louis Toodle-Oo, Parker's Band, Pretzel Logic, With a Gun.

Rating: 4/6