It must be nice being a fan of The Used. Although many bands are now offering CD/DVD compilations that serve as both multimedia thank-you notes to their fans and as opportunities to make more money between albums, the Utah-based modern rock mainstays have put out no less than two similarly-styled treasure troves of screamo-pop swag in the last four years.
That’s a lot of lead singer Bert McCracken to absorb.
With the release of the band’s latest let’s-show-our-fans-everything-and-we-literally-mean-everything collection “Berth,” The Used now has a crowded compilation to complement each of its two studio albums.
As with The Used’s first compilation, 2003’s “Maybe Memories,” this CD/DVD combo includes live tracks, concert footage, music videos, heartfelt testimonials from band members (although recently departed drummer Brandon Steineckert is conspicuously absent here) and nearly everything else the band could record. There is also a liberal dose of the guys doing random and silly things that are presented out of context, yet it doesn’t matter because this footage is designed to make you say, “Boy, that Bert sure is a wacky guy.”
Unless you don’t think the idea of eating the snot of another band member (which McCracken does, perhaps too eagerly) is very wacky, that is.
The CD includes nine live cuts from a September 2005 concert in Vancouver, Canada. Although the set is performed with much energy, McCracken’s voice sounds worn, and the songs sound so similar to their studio counterparts that they lack the spontaneity one usually expects from a live performance.
The centerpiece of the “Berth” DVD (which contains no less than two-and-a-half hours of footage and dozens of chances to hear “Take It Away,” because it’s all about the fans, man) is a quasi-documentary of the same name. This feature includes tons of footage of the guys on and off the stage while explaining what the band has been doing since its last release, 2004’s “In Love and Death” (touring nonstop, it turns out).
The documentary also takes a brief look at the making of the band’s upcoming album, concluding with an excerpt from the album’s probable first single “Pretty Handsome Awkward.” The track is another Used-style streamlined rocker complete with chugging guitars and reliably intense vocals, yet it is gussied up with enough KROQ-ready slickness that it sounds even poppier than anything on “In Love and Death,” proving that such a thing is possible for the band.
After looking at this package as a whole, though, one question should be asked: why was it even released? Yeah, it’s clearly designed for die-hard fans who want to see and hear everything Used-related, but “Maybe Memories” already exists for that purpose. Then again, there are certainly many people who want to know what McCracken and company have been up to in recent years.
It could also serve as a placeholder between albums, although the band’s next release is only a few months away. The band just announced its new album “Lies for the Liars” will hit stores May 8.
Maybe though, it’s simply all about the almighty dollar for both The Used and Reprise Records.
Even the title of this compilation doesn’t seem to make much sense. According to the back cover, a “berth” is “a shelflike sleeping space, as on a ship, airplane, railroad car or tour bus.” Perhaps this title is intended to reflect the band’s living conditions during its recent nonstop touring spree.
However, cynics and other haters may eagerly remark that the compilation was titled “Berth” so that McCracken would have his name included in the title of a Used album without making him look like an egomaniac.
Either way, if you worship the “Church of Bert McCracken” and want to know more than what you probably should about what he and the band are doing, pick up “Berth” and proudly display it on your shelf or makeshift Used shrine next to “Maybe Memories.”
If you’re a casual fan, though, just wait for the next album.
