Idle Cure

I'm listening to their Eclipse album right now. This is a terrific album. I like all of this band's catalog, especially Eclipse and 2nd Avenue. But all five albums have their moments. I would rank 'em like this...

1. 2nd Avenue (brilliant straight ahead rock album)
2. Eclipse (better production than any other IC album)
3. Inside Out (maybe my favorite songwriting of all their albums)
4. Tough Love (good, but kinda forgettable)
5. Idle Cure (some killer tunes, some awful stuff)

Tough for me to pick a favorite especially since I have the KMG reissues of the first 4 albums on 2 cds. For some reason that seems to make the albums run together. But I digress.

I really like all of their stuff. But I agree that the self-titled album does have some stinkers.
The first one I got was Eclipse.

I really like Steve Shannon's rough, but melodic vocal delivery.
One of the few bands where I like a mix of both their rockers and ballads.

Quote :

Idle Cure (some killer tunes, some awful stuff)

Agreed, but when it was good, it was verrrrrrry good.

I borrowed that album from a friend and recorded three songs (Breakaway, Overdrive, and one other I think) off of it.

I called up a friend who was strinctly into secular metal and told him that I had just recorded the new KISS single off of the radio, and played him the beginning of Breakaway over the phone. He fell for it.

FOJ, I completely agree with the order you put them in, and also the reasons

1. 2nd Avenue (brilliant straight ahead rock album)
2. Eclipse (better production than any other IC album)
3. Inside Out (maybe my favorite songwriting of all their albums)
4. Tough Love (good, but kinda forgettable)
5. Idle Cure (some killer tunes, some awful stuff)

Sometimes I do find Eclipse to be the best album, and Merciful Man sounds SOOOOO Much like Brian Adams' Everything I Do!!!!!

Fundy

I'd rank them more like this:


1. Inside Out - It was the first Idle Cure project I ever heard, and it is what made me a fan.

2. Eclipse - Great songs--more guitar! What more do you need to say?

3. 2nd Avenue - Awesome melodic rock!


I would put their other two projects as tied for dead last. There were just too many syrupy ballads with two much saxaphone in them. There were some good rockers, but not enough. ZZZzzzzzzzz............

"2nd Avenue"is the Idle Cure Cd I have.
I ordered "Eclipse" only got $ 5.
Was searching for "Inside Out" but it seems that's a hard one to order.

I think you're gonna like it, Yvonne. Its a terrific album.

The sample I have listened too sounds very good.

I am late to this band but I like what I am hearing...are all their albums about the same in sound?

I haven't listened to them in ages, but as far as my memory serves me they are pretty consistent in their style. It's all rock/hard rock from start to finish.

Fundy

They are consistent in style, but the earlier albums do have more syrupy ballads than the latter albums. If you get Eclipse, Inside Out, and 2nd Avenue, you will do great. The first two have some cool rockers too, but the ballads just make them drag more to me.

Thread bump! Honestly, these guys are great and to me this stands with anything secular when it comes to songwriting and production. I haven't got into the later albums yet, but Idle Cure stands out to me as one of the better Christian rock groups to have existed.

Oh wow old thread resurrection from our favorite son!
I have to agree with you, absolutely fantastic group that could hold their own with their secular contemporaries.

Idle Cure was a great rock band that sadly was gone way too soon.  They should have had the legacy that Petra, Rez, or Saint have had with as many albums.  I wish that they had done like so many other classic bands and at least recorded a reunion record or two even if they didn't have the following to tour.

I absolutely adore Idle Cure, one of my top 5 bands of all time. 

My ranking:

Tough Love 
2nd Avenue
Eclipse
Inside Out
Idle Cure 

I love them all.

Welcome Pethead to CHM!

I see a lot of people rank the s/t near or at the bottom. I love that album, so I can only imagine how much better the rest is. I'm in the discovery process right now.

Driven wrote:

Welcome Pethead to CHM!

I see a lot of people rank the s/t near or at the bottom. I love that album, so I can only imagine how much better the rest is. I'm in the discovery process right now.

Thanks!

I like the s/t a lot. It’s more a case of the others just being so great. There’s no doubt the s/t has some amazing tunes: Breakaway, Silent Hope, Come Back to Me, Overdrive, Come Alive.

Driven wrote:

Welcome Pethead to CHM!

I see a lot of people rank the s/t near or at the bottom. I love that album, so I can only imagine how much better the rest is. I'm in the discovery process right now.

Discovering the rest shouldn't be that hard.  Their whole catalog was reissued not too long ago.

I only had the first album.  I bought it because of the song "Breakaway".  Was a little disappointed that the rest of the album was much mellower.

Xid wrote:

I only had the first album.  I bought it because of the song "Breakaway".  Was a little disappointed that the rest of the album was much mellower.

Give 2nd Avenue a shot. It rocks harder than the debut.

Yeah, 2nd Avenue is overall a heavier album.

The biggest difference from the first album to the rest was the drums. The s/t album had those 80s cannons and the rest of their albums had much less reverb. I love that big 80s drum sound but for whatever reason the later albums not having it doesn’t bother me at all.

Not all ballads are created equal. The ballads on Eclipse were, BY FAR, the best of their career. “The Only Thing” would be a top 5 song for me. I love that song.

Follower of Jesus wrote:

The biggest difference from the first album to the rest was the drums. The s/t album had those 80s cannons and the rest of their albums had much less reverb. I love that big 80s drum sound but for whatever reason the later albums not having it doesn’t bother me at all.

Not all ballads are created equal. The ballads on Eclipse were, BY FAR, the best of their career. “The Only Thing” would be a top 5 song for me. I love that song. 

The Only Thing is probably my favorite Idle Cure song.

Follower of Jesus wrote:

The biggest difference from the first album to the rest was the drums. The s/t album had those 80s cannons and the rest of their albums had much less reverb. I love that big 80s drum sound but for whatever reason the later albums not having it doesn’t bother me at all.

Not all ballads are created equal. The ballads on Eclipse were, BY FAR, the best of their career. “The Only Thing” would be a top 5 song for me. I love that song.

My favorites are from Inside Out.  "Innocent Again" and "Who Cries For Me" are just powerful songs.

I think I will be finishing Letter 7 and relistening to Idle Cure while directing traffic this week.