J-Tull Dot Com becomes another in the series of Jethro Tull albums to get the big box/book set treatment. Originally released in 1999, this edition is sub-titled as Another Cast of the Net.
It includes four discs – the original album, a 2026 remix, a disc of bonus stuff including some previously unreleased studio tracks and three live recordings Tull’s 2000 tour.
The Bly-Ray has various other formats such as Dolby Atmos and 5.1 Surround Sound.
All encased in the familiar hard backed book format. The book itself isn’t as chunky as many of the previous sets.
Though it does include lyrics, photographs and a thorough breakdown of each song. The gloss-art paper is high quality as always.
As for the album. Hmmmm, well. It’s far from a Tull classic. I’d say this makes Another Cast of the Net as one for Tull completists and collectors of these box sets – and I include myself in that category.
Musically J-Tull Dot Com does not have much to recommend it to newbies. To me it’s always sounded like an album from a tired band light years away from their classic period. Very much on the decline.
Bar the Christmas Album, which wasn’t entirely original material, J-Tull Dot Com would be the final Tull album of new material until the Zealot Gene in 2022 after Ian Anderson reformed the band in some form.
J-Tull Dot Com to me comes over as pedestrian and perfunctory. A group of musicians phoning it in going through the motions. There’s no spark here.
Martin Barre’s guitar spikes things up here and there, but when you have a world class guitarist in the band surely you make the most of them rather than keep them practically hidden in the mix.
Spiral is a nice opener which does sound like Tull. AWOL and Hunt by Numbers also. To some extent the closer of A Gift of Roses is nice and catchy.
Here’s Spiral:
The remainder not so much with little to recommend them. One-paced, disjointed and not flowing well together. And what were they thinking with Hot Mango Flush?
As I mentioned earlier, you’ll be buying this if you’re an old Tull fan to keep the collection up to date. If not and you’re curious about the band and these box sets – go for Bursting Out or Broadsword and the Beast.
>> J-TULL DOT COM BOX SET ON AMAZON <<
Rumour has it that Crest of a Knave will be the next Tull album to get the treatment sometime next year. Now, that Is something to look forward to.
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