The Both
Aimee Mann and Ted Leo toured together and discovered a musical chemistry that comes to brilliant light on *The Both*. Each songwriter contributes songs that sound personal, though all were collaborations in the end. The two then perform them with arrangements where both musicians give their input. Leo’s “Milwaukee” benefits from having Mann’s harmony attached; whether Mann and Leo are harmonizing or singing to each other in an emotionally charged call-and-response, their voices work well together (the key to any vocal duo). Leo adds his Thin Lizzy/hard rock guitars to Mann’s somber pop; they also cover the early Thin Lizzy tune “Honesty Is No Excuse,” and Mann lends a prettiness to Leo\'s power-punk dreams. Mann sweetens Leo’s “Volunteers of America,” while Mann’s “You Can’t Help Me Now” is toughened up by his snarling guitar work. While it’s often obvious who wrote the heart of each song here, it’s a great feeling when Mann and Leo are on equal footing during “The Prisoner,” “Bedtime Stories,” and “The Inevitable Shove,” and you’re not really sure.
At the tops of their respective games, Aimee Mann and Ted Leo provide such a study in contrasts that a partnership between the two is as intriguing as it is unlikely. The duo's joined forces under the un-Googleable name the Both, and you’d expect that they’d each bring the other out of their respective comfort zones on their debut album.
At the tops of their respective games, Aimee Mann and Ted Leo provide such a study in contrasts that a partnership between the two is as intriguing as it is unlikely. The duo's joined forces under the un-Googleable name the Both, and you’d expect that they’d each bring the other out of their respective comfort zones on their debut album.
The announcement that Aimee Mann and Ted Leo would be releasing an album together under the name The Both surprised some people, but it really shouldn’t have. While Mann and Leo come from different musical worlds—she’s the former lead singer of the new-wave one-hit wonder ’Til Tuesday with a successful alt-rock solo…
The announcement that Aimee Mann and Ted Leo would be releasing an album together under the name The Both surprised some people, but it really shouldn’t have. While Mann and Leo come from different musical worlds—she’s the former lead singer of the new-wave one-hit wonder ’Til Tuesday with a successful alt-rock solo…