If a record label ever releases a compilation of Chris Mars' songs, they should title it Diminishing Returns. Every song on his debut, Horseshoes and Hand Grenades, is awesome; his second album, 75% Less Fat, has 10 good songs out of 13; on Tenterhooks, only 5 out of 12 songs are keepable; Anonymous Botch is aptly named with only 3 good songs; and his latest, after about a two-decade break, Notes to Self, has only 1 decent song, "When I Fall Down", which I was already familiar with because it helped Mars' old bandmate from The Replacements, Slim Dunlap, pay medical bills.
I usually listen to an album 5 times before deciding which songs to keep on my iPod, but Notes to Self grated on my ears from the first listen, so I only subjected myself to it 3 times. It's throughly soaked in classic rock, which I'm not a fan of. At least with his earlier stuff, there was a punk edge as well as some humor (see "Car Camping"). Notes to Self has none of that. Sounds like he's trying to sing — he can carry a tune, but Kody Templeman he is not. Every song sounds the same. I doubt Mars will release any more music. Probably for the best. . . .
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