wel right, its one to three covers and a rehash. I actually have to get that one when the time comes, but I still not consider it a real album, though "Excuse Me (I think I have a heartache)" i've seen them perform live in Providence, RI and they blew the roof off the joint.

Juke Boogie is vastly underated.

Fair enough, it's still worth listening to. Ruby don't take your love to town and multiply the heartaches are two really good songs, but you're right mostly covers and rehash.
Oh and BTW, I'm pretty new to uploading music and sharing it with people on the forum. How does that work?

Thats what I'm not sure about. theres a good service out there everyone uses, theres also some regulatory information I've been trying to get out of the Mod team but their slow on the up take (or in bed).

As soon as I know I'll let you know, but to protect the site, we don't allow open sharing except for compilations.

Copywrite infringement could compramise MusicBanter, and we don't to get shut down.

Ya I thought there might be some restrictions. Cool, that would be great if you let me know when you find out. :)

hmm....it seems Big3 has forgotten about this thread

Prolonging the Magic
 

Every band has their album that plays second fiddle to a larger one. There are two schools of Cake fandom, and Prolonging the Magic consistently loses, and comes in second, to both. Given the nature of this thread, I would say if you haven’t checked this album out you should probably do so.

Magic is arguably the more consistent of the albums (which may have a little something to do with the line-up stabilization) with a streamlined sound that baked flavors of influence into the…pie that was to become…Cake. (I apologize for that)

If you’ve heard it on the radio you’re likely familiar with Never There and Sheep go to Heaven which has the best trumpet solo and chorus in the entirety of the Cake catalogue respectively. In fact, Sheep not only has the best choral sing-along (which is a huge part of their live show with overall audience participation) but its probably best described as the song Paul McCartney would have written had he moved to the Western Coast of the United States, got a drinking problem and wandered the inner city for weeks discovering ennui.

While those two songs drove sales, the albums deeper cuts drove its staying power. Mexico which has been the bigger deep track (in my experience) is a slow burner made in the spirit of back porch drinking with mariachi flair. Lamenting the various ways she was out of our league, Cake crafts an anthem that speaks to any may who managed to touch the sun for only a few brief months. Alphabeta parking lot seems to take on a similar vibe if only to address, not women, but a life that’s slipping away. (though its very viable that the life is leaving because she did.)

Electronics also slip their way into the album, more as an influence than a style shift. On Cool Blue Reason, McCrea throws on the voice synth bolder and more proudly than a thousand teen pop stars have ever dared, using the alien feel to drive the song to a Presence of Memory vibe; the auditable soundtrack to Dali watching the clocks melt over the branches. To a lesser extent, Hem or your Garment is the first time they explore using electronics to create a stronger percussion section – depending on what version you’re listening to.

While standouts define the album, there is a strong base to Magic, that while not strong enough to stand on its own, creates one of the most rock-solid albums of Cake’s late 90’s alt-class. Guitar, You turn the screws, Walk on By, and Let Me Go weave in Cake’s unlimited sunshine constantly, reinforcing the theme with changes to tempo, style, mood, and arrangement. If music were talking points, Prolonging the Magic would always be on message.

The album isn’t without its missteps. I’m not sure what to say about “when you sleep” or “Where would I be” but if 2 out of 13 are just off the mark, its hard to fault an album. I’ve bought discs with 10 songs and I’d be lucky to get 1.5 that weren’t trash.

What had happened was I tried writing this entry at home, and I spend most of my time on the site at work. So I was hesitant to write a new entry at work because i'd have been starting from scratch.

Also, I thought all the reviews were sounding the same and wanted to give the final two to three some distance to avoid one giant uni-review.

The following quote came from a deleted post, and a banned poster who was likely spamming. Only the mods can see the post but I thought this chap - whoever he was - made enough of a point that I wanted to address it. (jackhammer, you remember when he got the boot?)

To paint this album (Motorcade) as simply a cheese-eating liberal album is a little ridiculous. The lyrics of a few of the songs are less country than Wayland Jennings, sure, but I won't say Jennings defines country. And with the Buck Owens/Nashville split that happened forever ago, not to mention what changes the Texan country musicians bring to the table, I think its unfair to define country music with one artist, and its unfair to say Cake isn't.

Admittedly, the lyrics aren't as country as the music. but the simple observations of life, the Hemmingway directness, which is more Willie Nelson than Trace Adkins is certainly country. If you were still here I'd ask you to explain further, but if anyone else feels the same, feel free to do so.

Nice to see a new addition to this. You’re right on about the consistency. I personally have a soft spot for Prolonging the Magic, and it’s likely due to the ease of it…

Good work... and I’m curious about your thoughts on Pressure Chief… guess I’ll be on the lookout.

Be prepped for that review. I'm taking that album out behind the woodshed.