Reviews in dutch magazines

[Eelco]

Another dutch music magazine is picking up on Our Lady Peace. It's called Aloha and it's more a magazine for 'older' music fans (lots of stories about the Stones, Jimi Hendrix and stuff), but it also talks about new bands, hence OLP. Not only did they get a positive review, also a halfpage story about the band. Here are the translations:

Aloha, november 2002 http://www.alohaweb.nl

Our Lady Who? Our Lady Peace!
door Chris van Oostrom

Ouyr Lady Peace, a band from Toronto has won all prestigios Canadian awards since the formation in 1992 and built a steadily growing group of fans in North America. Europe seemed like an impossible fortress to take. But their fifth album Gravity, produced by Bob (Metallica) Rock and the radiofriendly single Somewhere Out There could change that.
Despite the fact that new guitarist Steve Mazur is just as resonant as his precessor Mike Turner, some die-hards see the album as a bow for commercialism. "It's just more simple", says Jeremy Taggart, the drummer with the lefthanded technique of Elvin Jones. "Maybe they miss the layers of the past that..."
"I don't think it has anything to do with that", interrupts singer Raine Maida. "This album was succesful in the States right away, the video was everywhere. While our fans are used to us being the underdogs of underground. They see that when they're standing at concerts with people whi don't know all our songs. It's like taking your kid to school for the first time. For four years it has never been away from you..."
"...and now somebody else takes care of it", adds Taggart.
The input of Bob Rock goes further than slight streamlining of the group sound. It allso affected Maida's lyrics. These used to be as cryptic as fragmentic. You could also say that they were completely not understandable. Maida: "I started the same way as usual with writing this album, but Bob told me he didn't have a clue what I was talking about. So I decoded the cryptic messages for him. Then he said: 'That's cool, but I don't get it from the song, so start over. Nobody had ever told that to me. Writing lyrics isn't easy for me, so if omebody tells you they aren't good enough... That caused some tension, I can tell you. Ik got ill. Didn't sleep, had to go to hospital. The stress had caused a viral infection. So fuck Bob! [smiles] But now I love the man even more because he was under my skin all the time. When I realised what he was leading me to and what I was doing with it, I thought: 'this reminds me of what I felt when I heard The Joshua Tree.' I've always wanted to write lyrics like that and Bob has taken me closer to that point.


Our Lady Peace - Gravity
AAA (3 out of 5)

Canada's best kept secret
Despite numerous prizes in home country Canada and an increasing popularity in the United States, Our Lady Peace doesn't seem to be able to make it in Europe. However the prospects of their fifth album seem better. Producer Bob Rock has managed to put some direction in their energy without losing the vitality of their buzzing guitarwalls.
Only the single Somewhere Out There, with violins and all, looks like an open request for American playlists. And singer Raine Maida rarely sounds anymore like an ongoing constipation and tormented chest have merged unpleasantly, so little seems to be in the way of the great songs. Not that the man seems to have more reason to be happy. 'I hate myself for listening to you', he grumbles in Do You Like It. New guitarist Steve Mazur adequatly manipulates the guitar to create the patented irreconcilability.
Chris van Oostrom
Genre: rock

Earlier there was a review in Oor, Holland's biggest music magazine:

"Success is a choice, that's what the mental coaches of this world often tell
us. But whose choice? The case Our Lady Peace proves where the power ISN'T
in the music business. The albums of the Canadian foursome have all ended
unnoticed in the discountbins. Now the people higher up have decided
differently and they want it to happen with the guitar-rockers. And so we
dutifully give a summary of OLP's blessings. And for that we just take the
review for Gravity's precessor Spiritual Machines: a collection of beautiful
songs, in which singer Raine Maida and guitarist Mike Turner claim glorious
leading roles. Still true, although Turner has been quietly replaced by a
Steve Mazur and topproducer Bob Rock was hired. Gravity isn't different,
more commercial or better than its four older brothers. But it IS high above
the grey guitarmasses. Again. Or, to quote the notoriuous music-critic HB
about the amazing record Clumsy: 'more depth, dynamics and diversity than
many arena-filling band. Now do you believe it? (Helmut Boeijen)"

[christa lynn]

Those sound cool. The comment about old fans was interesting, I'm inclined to agree with Raine.