If I could fan-edit the album...

[TeresofBlood]

I'm not even talking about the bonus tracks here. I'm talking just what is on the CD. I think cutting certain tracks would make this a rock solid effort.

Before I get into that, I just want to say that I've been working on a mega-review of the album and I have been analyzing the song structures as well as who dominated each composition.

The album can be divided into two categories: Alice/Band dominated *In Touch, Killed By Love, The One that Got Away* and Hampton/Saber dominated *I Know Where You Live, Catch Me if You Can, Wrapped in Silk, Hungry, Salvation, I am the Spider*. You can probably see a problem right there. You might also notice that I didn't mention Vengeance or Wake the Dead. Those songs are about 50/50 in terms of contribution. I personally give Alice credit for Vengeance, but you could argue the other way.

Anyway, the album is dominated by the Hampton/Saber compositions. Some of them - Salvation, I am the Spider, Wrapped in Silk - get free passes from me. The three most problematic tracks here are I Know Where You Live, Catch Me, and I'm Hungry. I'm willing to give "I Know" a free pass because it transitions well from the prologue and the lyrics are dark, yet hilarious. It is a solid way to start out the album.

Hungry should be nixed for not only being the most repetitive song on the album, but because it evens the odds between Alice and Hampton/Saber.

The other song I would nix is Catch Me if You Can. The reason is because Alice's vocal is so dominating that you can't hear any of the underlying instrumentation. Also, it has one of the worst intros on the album. Its chorus is also very repetitive. I know many people like this song, but I just feel like the concept was never realized. Most importantly, this song is directed at the police. Every other song on the album is either introspective or directed at his victim. This fact alone makes it expendable.

I listened to the album without Catch Me and Hungry and I like it quite a bit more. The transition from Wake the Dead to In Touch really breathes some Alice-flavor and much needed variety into the first half of the album. The transition from Killed By Love to The One that Got Away is also very good. Not to mention, it is a more logical transition than having Hungry in the middle.

People, give this a whirl and let me know what you think. It really makes a difference. With this track listing, the only thing I'd like to have seen added is some more dialogue in between tracks - like Alice speaking to his victims or something.

[Rocketdog]

Yeah, I get what you're saying. Having recently just bought the I-tunes bonus tracks, I did a little re-editing myself.

What I did, however, was to add two of the bonus tracks back in, since they were both good enough that they should have made the album anyway. I sequenced them story/song structure wise where I thought they best fit and sounded as far as the album flow went, and now I like listening to the album even more. I put "I'll Still Be There" after "Wake The Dead" and before "Catch Me If You Can", and "Shadow Of Yourself" after "Wrapped in Silk", and Before "Killed By Love".

The only difference I almost made was to put "I'll Still Be There" between "I Know Where You Live" and "Vengeance Is Mine", but it just seemed to fit a bit better where I put it, instead.

Try that, for those who can, and see what you think.

[Shoesalesman]

I'd ditch the clapping. As a matter of fact, in spots where there is no clapping I'd put something in there (like a special glossy coating or a magic spell even) that would render any attempt at adding any clapping completely fruitless... and a criminal offence.

[moonshadow]

I'd ditch the clapping. As a matter of fact, in spots where there is no clapping I'd put something in there (like a special glossy coating or a magic spell even) that would render any attempt at adding any clapping completely fruitless... and a criminal offence.

1 magic spell coming up!

[steven15322]

I would have included the left out duet he did with Alice from the Brady Bunch. Or the one he planned to do with Neil Diamond called "Cold Ethyl Forever In Blue Jeans"

[daytripper63]

I changed them up on my music player....Thanks Killer.....I really like it better that way.

[TeresofBlood]

Part of the problem with the album is that it is very schizofrenic. Alice's songs have a playful side to them, but the other songs are dark - very non-Alice. If you were to include every song, with the bonus tracks, the album would benefit from serious restructuring. People seem to be treating this thread as a joke, but rearranging an album can make the pacing better or provide balance.

I haven't listened to this yet, but:

Side A:
I Know Where You Live
Vengeance is Mine
(I'm Hungry)
I'll Still Be There
Wake the Dead
In Touch With Your Feminine Side
Catch Me if You Can

Side B:
Wrapped in Silk
Shadow of Yourself
Killed By Love
The One that Got Away
Salvation
I Am The Spider

()= Not needed, but this is where I would put it, if I included it.

[TeresofBlood]

Well, I listened to the album in the order I mentioned in my previous post. Love the album or hate the album, this new order is absolutely better. With or without the bonus tracks, it just works much better.

I'm Hungry makes more sense at the beginning, for obvious reasons. I have always found it distracting near the end, because it disrupts the flow and doesn't fit that part of the story.

The Wake The Dead / Feminine Side sound great side by side.

Catch Me sounds great after Feminine side. Fem Side ends with a cymbal echoing out, and Catch Me begins with a cymbal echoing in. It sounds so much better. I've always found the transition from Wake to Catch Me distracting.

Now, the second half of the album is rock solid from Killed by Love to the end. For those who didn't dig the album (and those who did), I REALLY urge you to listen to it this way. It can't make the album a masterpiece, but it is certainly better.

[WickedYoungMan]

If I could fan edit the album, I would have gone with a different producer! Seems like that was the wild card here.

[DwightFry57]

Agree with Goat Herder 100%. Production like Ezrin's could have turned an 8 into a 10. A few of the songs that fade seem to do so rather pointlessly. And I was really expecting "YOU EAT!" to be screamed at the very end.