Liars (2004)

“Sing and shout it, tell the world about it…..” Liars is amazing! It’s an honest-to-goodness old fashioned concept album, exploring the “paucity of truth” in our lives, as the liner notes explain. The cover of Todd in Easter Bunny regalia sets the tone for this exploration of the lies we tell ourselves and perpetuate, sometimes without even realizing it. The first track, (Truth) is a great opener, both as a set up for the concept, and musically, as the driving techno-beat draws your attention. (Todd labels the style “retro-modern”.) On the tracks that follow, he takes aim, among other things, at the woeful state of today’s music (Soul Brother), the “New Frontier” (Future), stereotypes about the sexes (Happy Anniversary), religion (Mammon and God Said), politics (Liar), egotism (Stood Up) and love (Flaw). Some of these songs are hard-edged, but some are playful, and the mixture is riveting. There isn’t one weak cut on the entire CD. But where this work truly shines is in the introspective songs. Beautiful melodies and lush arrangements stir not only your emotions, but your mind as well. These songs (Past, Sweet, Afterlife, Living, Wondering) rank with the very best of this type that Todd has treated us to over the years. If there is any justice in the world, Past will be an instant adult contemporary staple. And yet, breaking this monumental work up into its separate tracks really fails to do it justice. The way each song flows into the next creates an atmosphere that literally transports you and places you inside the mind of this eccentric genius. This is not just the best Todd Rundgren album in years; it is simply the best album by ANY artist in years.
 
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As soon as the laser reads the spinning compact disc you know that this isn’t your fathers’ Todd Rundgren… or is it? Truth be told: “Liars”, with all of the advanced production, is another challenging combination of ideal and rhythm and, well, truth! This CD moves around the concept of “what is truth and what is not truth” surprisingly well and I found myself absolutely curious as to what would be next as I took Todd’s musical tour of thought. You got to crank this one up! Borrowing from the technological successes of “No World Order” and “A Wizard, A True Star” this disc plays for a smart and satisfying, rock-operatic 75 minutes! On this CD reside many of the famous and various Todd personas that longtime Rundgren fans will surely recognize, but new fans can latch onto with ease. “Past” is classic Ballad-Todd, “Happy Anniversary” is typical tongue in cheek-Todd, as “Soul Brother” is Pop-Todd! (toasted or right out of the wrapper like when you were a kid!) “The Wondering” and “Future” seem to represent a new “Go with the flow-Todd” both musically and lyrically. Spiritually, the CD is thoughtfully created to examine the conceptual nature of what we incorrectly take for granted as fact, one being that Todd Rundgren was looking at the end of what was a fine career! - Marc Israel
 
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Oooops he did it again. Another classic album under his belt. a concept album like no other. Liars is full of Phili soul..ballads, scorching lyrics, and beautiful melodies. what you have with "liars" is a cross between something/anything and hermit of mink hollow and a wizard a true star ... put them all together and what do you have, a BRILLIANT CD with a lot of magic. MUSICAL MAGIC... I have had "Liars" for a week already and I haven't taken it out of my CD player. An instant modern day classic. TODD IS STILL GODD..
 
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If every Todd Rundgren fan had a dollar for every time they had heard that question, they’d have a lot of dollars!! Most fans eventually tire of explaining that for 35 years Todd has recorded dozens of albums, first with Nazz, then solo, then forming the band Utopia before going solo again. That he has produced countless albums by artists such as Meatloaf, Hall & Oates and XTC. That he is a talented songwriter and multi-instrumentalist and has written many songs for movies as well as television. That his songs have been recorded by many artists including most-recently Mandy Moore. That he has had countless songs on the radio, including I Saw The Light and many versions of Hello Its Me. In the end, the simplest answer to the question is “Remember that song ‘Bang the Drum’? The one that goes “I don’t want to work, I want to bang on the drum all day’? That’s TODD!” The Todd faithful have come to detest that song – which Todd doesn’t even own the rights to anymore, having sold it to Disney – but it is the one song that everyone seems to know, having heard it at sporting events and even from mechanized monkeys at the local chain drugstore. This week Sanctuary Records has released Todd Rundgren’s latest work, ‘Liars’ featuring 14 new songs never available on CD before, although a few had been available to subscribers of his web site, Patronet. The central theme of this album is lies, and how we live our lives surrounded by them. From the lies we tell ourselves, our children, our friends and our significant others to the lies told to us by performers, organized religions and their followers, Todd lets both barrels fly with no holds barred. Reading the lyrics provided in the liner notes of the CD sleeve, one perceives a very negative tone, overall, to this CD, but taking each song separately and listening to it that negativity is not as noticeable. Those who have listened to Todd over the years are well aware of his constantly shifting styles – seldom are 2 albums in a row in the same style – and this album is significantly different from previous releases, as well. Returning to his solo roots, Rundgren plays most of the instrumental parts as well as doing all the vocals. The songs are heavy on the keyboards and use computer/rhythm machine-generated percussion tracks, similar to his 1994 interactive CD, No World Order. Fans of his virtuoso guitar playing are likely to be a little disappointed with this album, as the only guitar playing heard is in the song ‘Living’ – however the lead guitar on this song will lend itself perfectly to some extended playing on the current US and Europe tour. Touring with a 4-piece backing band again, the first time since his tour to support the Bossa Nova-sounding album ‘With A Twist’, Todd will be able to concentrate on his singing as he has not been able to do since he performed with his “big band” tours of 1989 and 1991. Like most Todd Rundgren albums, this one will take multiple listenings to fully appreciate its depth – don’t be fooled by listening to short online clips of the songs. Soul Brother, Wondering, Afterlife and Liar are my favorite songs, so far, from this CD
 
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Truth be told, Todd Rundgren is back… with an extraordinary new album! “Liars” is Rundgren’s first album release of all new material in a decade…and it is his most brilliant work in 20 years. With “Liars” as the central theme Rundgren dives headfirst into this difficult subject and the results are unforgettable. Rundgren addresses the concept behind his new album in the liner notes, ”All of these songs are about the paucity of truth. At first they may seem to be about other things, but that is just a reflection of how much dishonesty we have accepted in our daily lives. We are raised from birth to believe things that cannot be proven, or that are plainly not true. People will often brag of their honesty, when there is so much they have simply chosen to ignore or leave unexamined.” With the release of “Liars”… Todd Rundgren has created an honest (no holds barred) exploration of an oft-ignored subject, posing critical questions about the true nature of reality, which portions of our lives reflect truth and honesty vs. those facets that are mired in self-delusion and deception? Without question, there are very few contemporary music artists possessing the confidence, vision and intelligence needed to tackle this difficult, complex subject with such depth and impact. Todd Rundgren has purposefully threaded his lush new musical tapestry with a meticulously crafted series of single (and double) word song titles that are presented in a poignant, powerful sequence… with inimitable Rundgrenesque production wizardry morphing and melding each track into the next. Throughout the fourteen-track experience, Rundgren takes the listener on an unpredictable philosophical and musical journey, with an exploration of the duality of life... the dichotomy of human existence, dynamically colored with an extraordinary fusion of contemporary and retro musical styles and genres. Todd Rundgren’s new release, "Liars" represents a bold new artistic paradigm - a relevant 21st century concept album delivered with fresh, contemporary production with touches of retro instrumentation and lush vocals arrangements... while challenging the listener to question his/her perceptions of reality and patterns of behavior.
 
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"Liars" Todd Rundgren US release date 4-06-2004 Sanctuary Records. Todd Rundgren is back and this new effort deserves your attention. Todd has had a long, diverse career. He has been a pioneer in the music industry with his recording and producing efforts. He was the first to come up with the idea for on line music distribution. He has continued to create music on the forefront of technology but has been able to blend this technology with a bit of "blue eyed soul" on his new release "Liars". Todd writes about truth on "Liars", truth about politics and religion. Truth about relationships and expectations. Truth about lying and the consequences of telling lies. And although you may not agree with his idea of the "truth" this .CD. will undoubtedly make you re-examine your idea of what is truth."Liars" has a "modern" sound on many of the songs, not sounding like traditional instruments. Blended with this modern sound you will find searing guitar solos to remind you that Todd knows his way around the traditional instruments as well. The lyrics on "Liars" are blissfully layered creating a beautiful sound you wont believe came from the human voice. Todd Rundgren has worn the label "A Wizard A True Star" since the 70's and "Liars" will confirm for all of us that this label still stands.
 
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