Reviewed by: Theon Weber
Reviewed on: 2007-10-02

Posted 10/02/2007 - 07:31:53 AM by florenz6:
	.... had to hear this yesterday from start to end: quite boring experience, nostalgic in a negative way, old tricks and licks all over the place, even the few good songs get lost in this mainstream. Mr. Springsteen should go back to the spirit of "Nebraska" and follow "The Ghost of Tom Joad" (or read Nick Southall´s manual:))
Posted 10/02/2007 - 09:34:04 AM by how2know924:
	i think he is trying something legitimately new - for him at least. "your own worst enemy" and "girls in their summer clothes" are the kind of pure pop he wouldn't usually let himself write. i agree that half the album is a bit boring, but overall this album is much more genuine and artful than "the rising", which at the time everyone heralded as the second coming.
Posted 10/02/2007 - 10:55:22 AM by cwperry:
	I've experienced a resurgence of interest in Springsteen this year; so, I am looking forward to hearing this. Could he have picked a worse title, though?!?!
Posted 10/02/2007 - 11:11:18 AM by florenz6:
	A worse title is hard to imagine. Perhaps "The Rising"?! I was never keen on his music, except I liked the two albums mentioned above very much, their blackness, their nakedness, their kind of storytelling. There may have been some good albums in years long gone by, i dunno, but what I reallyy don´t like on his latest albums, this testosterone-driven pathetic overkill underlining that this is GREAT AMERICAN MUSIC. "How2" is right: the two pure pop songs could role-model a more lighter approach that would strip it all a bit down. There is no "Boss" anymore!
Posted 10/02/2007 - 12:02:23 PM by mvdu76:
	That's IT!! I am DONE with Stylus Magazine! To give the album of the year a C means you are not even worth visiting. Despicable; this site isn't even interested in honest criticism.
Posted 10/02/2007 - 01:05:32 PM by florenz6:
	re - mvdu76 -- Are you a fan club official? A red-neck? A patriot?
Posted 10/02/2007 - 05:40:05 PM by Jscannell:
	Grow up Florenz6. Someone who likes Bruce is not necessarily any of those things. I dunno, maybe you're British (I'm guessing yes b/c of the Southall reference) and you don't get how this works but all sorts of people like Bruce Springsteen over here. It's because he can do no wrong, even when he writes bad music.
Posted 10/02/2007 - 06:29:35 PM by florenz6:
	re: Tese were only questions, Jscannel. "It´s because he can do no wrong, even when he writes bad music" is by far the most nonsensical an dull sentence I read in a long time. And someone who attacks Stylus in such a over-generalizing way, seems a bit, well, weird! And read carefully - it´s the other things he was writing that made me a bit suspicious, not being a fan of BS. So, read a bit carefully, little boy!
Posted 10/03/2007 - 01:34:25 AM by cinatyte:
	Need to give the album a while to grow on me. Brendan O'Brien is a hack. That is all.
Posted 10/03/2007 - 01:19:41 PM by IanMathers:
	Why is it that "honest criticism" is always reducible to "people who share the opinions I have"?
Posted 10/03/2007 - 01:35:19 PM by grandbanks:
	Most people are way more narrow-minded than they care to admit. Mvdu can find dozens of reviews lavishing this record in praise, have fun with them. This review seems much more "honest" to me than most I have read. Which means nothing, people who like this guy generally have no ability to take criticism, which is fine. But if so, why read it? Just listen to the fucking album please.
Posted 10/06/2007 - 01:34:47 PM by florenz6:
	The closer: Jscanell said: "all sorts of people like Bruce Springsteen over here. It´s because he can do no wrong, even when he writes bad music." This is even more dull than Raskys sentence about hippies. It´ s like: "all sorts of people like George W. Bush in Anerica. It´s beacuse he can do no wrong even ehen he writes music." Oh, my goodness. What a crap!
Posted 10/06/2007 - 01:35:51 PM by florenz6:
	correction: ...even when he makes bad politics". Oh my goodness, what a crap!
Posted 10/29/2007 - 08:23:42 AM by Trustme:
	A lifelong Springsteen fan myself, I acknowledge that Magic is a career-low. At best, the songs sound like the outtakes and B-sides from Tracks (released 1998). Springsteen is striving hard to come up with a decent tune, but IMO he only succeeds on "Long walk home". The worst thing about Magic is the production: Boomy, heavily compressed - and that effect-laden vocal on "Girls in their summer clothes"?