Five Songs, Chapter Nine
"Until the Day Burns Down" by Chamberlain
A friend and I were discussing emo music the other night, and whether we like anything that would be classified as that. (Full confession, no pun intended -- part of the reason we were discussing it is because I admitted to owning two Dashboard Confessional albums. The fact that this wasn't a conversation stopper is a testament to the friend's equanimity.) Anyway, in my collection, besides Rainer Maria, The Get Up Kids, and The Promise Ring, Chamberlain might be the only band that really qualifies. But the album this song comes from, The Moon My Saddle, was a step away from their earlier, more clearly emo sound. It's actually a pretty strange record, combining a sort of Springsteen-esque highway-hungry yearning with the tortured romantic poetics of the genre in question. This song's a stab at an epic, and its lyrics, as delivered by singer David Moore, are actually pretty affecting. (Oh, also, there's a reasonable chance that my mother is going to ask me to define "emo music" after reading this. Any tips on how to do this in an efficient manner would be appreciated.)
"As Victims Would" by Will Johnson
A spare, beautifully delivered song by the lead singer of Centro-matic, from his solo album, Vultures Await. (I'm getting to the point, like with this song, where I'm wondering if I've repeated songs in these posts, but I don't have time to go back and check.)
"Sixteen, Maybe Less" by Calexico/Iron & Wine
My favorite song off In the Reins, the seven-song album these two released together last fall. I've also finally been spending some time with Calexico's own new record, Garden Ruin, and it's excellent.
"I Wanted to Tell You" by Matthew Sweet
I think I read somewhere that they're reissuing Girlfriend with a second disc of demos, live performances, etc. It must be to mark the album's 15-year anniversary. I am a thousand years old.
"Wish You Were Here" by Pink Floyd
Your classic for the day. Now shut up and eat your vegetables.
A friend and I were discussing emo music the other night, and whether we like anything that would be classified as that. (Full confession, no pun intended -- part of the reason we were discussing it is because I admitted to owning two Dashboard Confessional albums. The fact that this wasn't a conversation stopper is a testament to the friend's equanimity.) Anyway, in my collection, besides Rainer Maria, The Get Up Kids, and The Promise Ring, Chamberlain might be the only band that really qualifies. But the album this song comes from, The Moon My Saddle, was a step away from their earlier, more clearly emo sound. It's actually a pretty strange record, combining a sort of Springsteen-esque highway-hungry yearning with the tortured romantic poetics of the genre in question. This song's a stab at an epic, and its lyrics, as delivered by singer David Moore, are actually pretty affecting. (Oh, also, there's a reasonable chance that my mother is going to ask me to define "emo music" after reading this. Any tips on how to do this in an efficient manner would be appreciated.)
"As Victims Would" by Will Johnson
A spare, beautifully delivered song by the lead singer of Centro-matic, from his solo album, Vultures Await. (I'm getting to the point, like with this song, where I'm wondering if I've repeated songs in these posts, but I don't have time to go back and check.)
"Sixteen, Maybe Less" by Calexico/Iron & Wine
My favorite song off In the Reins, the seven-song album these two released together last fall. I've also finally been spending some time with Calexico's own new record, Garden Ruin, and it's excellent.
"I Wanted to Tell You" by Matthew Sweet
I think I read somewhere that they're reissuing Girlfriend with a second disc of demos, live performances, etc. It must be to mark the album's 15-year anniversary. I am a thousand years old.
"Wish You Were Here" by Pink Floyd
Your classic for the day. Now shut up and eat your vegetables.
Labels: Five Songs
posted by JMW at 11:08 PM
2 Comments:
Every year while my 9th graders and I suffer through Romeo and Juliet it is inevitable that some kid will shout out "He's so emo!" during the scenes when Romeo is all cry-babying over Rosaline and/or Juliet. So, I guess Romeo is emo. Got that mom of ASWOBA?
Yes, I've got it! Exactly what I thought...thanks!
I think I'll skip the music entries from now on.
It's too late for me to understand today's music.
I'll just stick with my own era...Ann Murray,
Neil Sedaka, the Carpenters, etc. Are you gagging?
ASWOBA'S MOM
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