I hope nobody minds that I started a new thread. Things may get unwieldy. After 2 weeks of daily listening, I'm fully blown over and drifting.
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Sea Line
If one were forced to compare to what came before - tinges of P=A & HOB, yet different, really... Cool lyrical imagery everywhere in this song.
"The evening the trees lash at the window, the roots crawl up and strangle the candles..."
Song in Space
SK knows we are all merely flatlanders trapped by dimensions. A couple amazing insights after listening several times:
If MBV "Loveless" were never recorded and shoegaze never happened, this song would set the rage for "the next guitar sound." Massive.
I think in SK's usual double-entendre style, he is poking at the insanity known as reality TV:
"They say that in the future every man and woman will be a star. And everybody's shining and it's blinding and they don't see too far."
Is Steve Kilbey a Carl Sagan fan?
Theatre and its Double
I was bored of this song on the first listen, but it has grown a lot. I imagine the guitar sounds new if you have never heard An April March or the Cocteau Twins, but I have. What I really like now is the dark P=A atmosphere throughout. The solo is one of the Church's very finest. Probably Marty, not sure. Sounds like Robert Smith on speed, spinning, touring The Top.
"You're blowing hot and cold, I want you heart and soul."
Telepath
This is "THE" quintessential Church song. Happy, sad and longing. Hotel Womb by the way it tugs at the heart and Louisiana's kissing antipodal cousin. If you like Vox AC-30's this is it, man.
"... nobody knows their phony shapes"
See Your Lights
Marty, singing kinda like Peter. Peter playing trademark stratocaster arpeggios. This is a fine song. Great unconventional structure. Kraut influences shine. When Marty sings "disappear like smoke in the cold night sky" you can literally visualize it, like an exhale on a cold October evening. Powerful stuff. I think that's Steve's bass vi in the bridge parts.
"We're spinning down and down"
Lay Low
OK you logic majors, here's one for you:
As Chaos is to P=A, "--------" is to Forget Yourself.
"Do you know, who is your foe?"
Maya
Something about this reminds me of classic Church - Disappointment and Monday Morning. Went back 13 years and wanted to stay for a while. Regrets, faces lost, names, I need a drink or 5 right now. Majestic guitars.
"Well what can you do now, everything's done now."
Appalatia
A peak amongst peaks. This is really really good. I sure wish Pete got on more records. I loved "A New Season" on the last tour. Exceptional drumming, really entwined with the feel of the song, and drives the dynamics.
" You're such a beautiful high."
June
For those that remember vinyl, this would start side b. A shift to a more dreamy feel. Chiming Vox AC-30 in the background. An e-bow crying through a pitch shifter, reminiscent of Slowdive's first record.
"like a child in a field, so it goes, so it yields"
Dont You Fall
I keep coming back to P=A with this record, less in direct track-for-track comparison, more-so in the sense that it evokes a dense atmosphere. This record is going to be a classic. Amazing guitar masterpiece. Another, less obvious, standout is the superb backing vocal tracks. Well executed!
"there is no hallowed ground"
I Kept Everything
Ever hear American Music Club's "Will You Find Me?" The guitar line is reminiscent of the haunting AMC classic. IKE sprouted up a century after being Earthed and not far from the burned remains of the Dome. SK's hardrive is full. :^)
"You're a tiny little flash in a damaged universe"
Nothing Seeker
Neuman & the Disillusionist have formed an alliance, I'm afraid. Thoughtless, brutal, and different.
Now it sounds like my speaker is ripped.
"It's useless when the ending becomes endless."
Reversal
Now let's show Cher how to use that fucking Auto-Tune plugin. Overused on the pop charts, but it really sounds like SK was the first.
"I'm not expecting you to like it, but try it."
Summer
AKA - Tranquility of a Glow Worm in the Afterlife. I enjoyed the ways this slowly unfolds. Blinding perspective and brilliant guitar chime. Everything great about the Church shines at least a googolplex here.
"Outside our skin... One long summer in surf city, solar eyes, recollection."
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