Rating:  -
i say that the googoos have never been better rock on woo hooo!!!
Rating: -
Many say this is the album that should be named Dizzy #2, I beg to differ. Although a few songs do have the same feel as they do in Dizzy, John Rzeznik and Robby Takic really put their minds to work and began to venture back into their earlier album styles. Songs like "Big Machine", "Sympathy", and "Truth Is a Whisper" will instantly take you back to their success of Dizzy. However, when listening to the album, do not discredit the other songs as being not worth listening to. These songs are as profound and lyrically intriguing as all of their past albums have been. Gutterflower is an excellent album and a great follow-up to Dizzy Up the Girl. Their continued loyalty to their music has been a great tribute to who they are. This album only further exemplifies these men and their thoughts throughout the years.
Rating:  -
As much as I hate to admit it, the GGD are not the best band ever. Not even Top 50. But it would be really cool if they were, if their first self-titled effort in 1987 was the only relevant piece of music to come out since whatever the Beatles first put out some 40 odd years ago. Well, that's how I felt in high school, and for sure, the GGD were pretty cool then....and then Dizzy Up the Girl happened.
There are moments in the GGD first 3 albums (before Superstar Carwash), when they sound really, really cool. The recording quality is terrible....everything is pretty terrible...but it all works perfectly because you get the distinct impression that they really don't care. Alas, at their very coolest, the GGD still fall short of similar things that have gone before, because Rzeznik is, unfortunately, no Paul Westerberg or Peter Perrett. To play songs like "James Dean" you probably really have to be an unattractive guy - perhaps like Westerberg - and Rzeznik is just too good looking to play the role of the unwanted loser. Drinking alone doesn't get you inside fear, desperation, or hope.
Dizzy Up the Girl and Gutterflower will of course make the GGD a lot of money. And to be honest, hidden under the over-produced surface of Gutterflower, it seems like some of that old "Up Yours!" GGD is trying to creep out. Gutterflower is pretty decent guitar-pop, but if that's what you're after then you should start your downward spiral with Matchbox 20 instead. Gutterflower, to me, sounds like, feeling guilty about selling out big-time to the masses of teenage girls and lonely mums but not wanting them not to buy the album, they went for the Dizzy ballad formula but tried to sneak a little bit of that old drunken attitude in there, which in itself is a remarkably clever achievement, and hence the 3 stars. But, sitting here having listened to pretty much all that the GGD have recorded, I know they can do so much better than this - they have done so before. Check out any of "Long way down", "Only one", "Stop the world", "Just the way you are" or even "Messed up".
My wish is that the Goo Goo Dolls became really critical of their own work, realised it didn't cut the mustard, got extremely intoxicated, and went into a recording studio with a drumkit, a bass guitar and one acoustic guitar. It would be like GGD circa 1989 unplugged. Rzeznik is just about talented enough to make that experience possibly something worth listening to. He has certainly matured over the years in terms of his songwriting and that is commendable, but I think the GGD are at a stage now where they can sit back and ponder whether they really need to be taking their music this seriously. They've made enough money to retire happily - they need to take more than a few risks in their new album in order to retain any credibility, at least in my mind.
Rating: -
This is just a great CD that I love to listen to. I have listened to the Goo Goo Dolls since 1993, and they are one of my favorite bands. Regardless of what some say, I feel like their sound has not changed that much over the past ten years. I absolutely love Johnny's voice and the lyrics are great. I would HIGHLY recommend that you purchase "Superstar Car Wash" from 1993 as I believe this is their absolute best
Rating: -
"Dizzy Up the Girl"...
"Gutterflower" is a must have if you are a Goo Goo Dolls fan but it's not as good as "Dizzy Up The Girl" but better than "A Boy Named Goo", to me anyway. "Sympathy" shows a very profound side of Johnny and makes as all think about our own lifes and mistakes (like all his music really)
But to make a long review short Gutterflower is worth buying. Just skip the songs that Robbie sings because they in no way compare to Johns. =)
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