Friday, April 07, 2006
past flames
Young People: "The Clock"
I was a big fan of Young People's first album, which came out in 2002. For a few weeks I was pretty obsessed with their music, this ghostly, shambling, country-esque folk-rock that sounded improvised and always on the verge of falling completely apart. It was beautiful and fragile, often clattery and disjointed (in the very best of ways), and one of my favorite albums of that year. For whatever reason, though, I didn't make much of an attempt to listen to subsequent releases. Until last week, that is, when I noticed eMusic was offering their brand-new album All At Once. If you've ever used eMusic, you probably know how it is; halfway through your monthly limit you're already struggling for stuff to grab, and thus wind up downloading stuff based on the merest whim or recommendation. Thus was the case with me and this new Young People record.
I knew that guitarist Jeff Rosenburg (formerly Pink - or was it Brown?) had left Young People, and thus I was prepared for something different. Plus you'd sort of expect the band to have to change noticeably if they were to continue past an album or two, as their sound, though awesome, was fairly limited and thus could leave them prone to repetition. And sure enough, All At Once doesn't sound too much like that first record. Pianos and bass guitars now make apperances, while the guitar is sparser and more erratic than before. There's no mistaking this gal's voice, though, and the general atmosphere remains fairly similar, so it ain't entirely a jarring and/or discontinuous experience, or anything. "The Clock", with its paucity of guitar and percussion, and that swingin', Dresdon Dolls-soundin' chorus, represents well how the band has digressed from their initial sound. It's also a nice piece of work in and of its own pretty little self.
Young People: "The Clock"
I was a big fan of Young People's first album, which came out in 2002. For a few weeks I was pretty obsessed with their music, this ghostly, shambling, country-esque folk-rock that sounded improvised and always on the verge of falling completely apart. It was beautiful and fragile, often clattery and disjointed (in the very best of ways), and one of my favorite albums of that year. For whatever reason, though, I didn't make much of an attempt to listen to subsequent releases. Until last week, that is, when I noticed eMusic was offering their brand-new album All At Once. If you've ever used eMusic, you probably know how it is; halfway through your monthly limit you're already struggling for stuff to grab, and thus wind up downloading stuff based on the merest whim or recommendation. Thus was the case with me and this new Young People record.
I knew that guitarist Jeff Rosenburg (formerly Pink - or was it Brown?) had left Young People, and thus I was prepared for something different. Plus you'd sort of expect the band to have to change noticeably if they were to continue past an album or two, as their sound, though awesome, was fairly limited and thus could leave them prone to repetition. And sure enough, All At Once doesn't sound too much like that first record. Pianos and bass guitars now make apperances, while the guitar is sparser and more erratic than before. There's no mistaking this gal's voice, though, and the general atmosphere remains fairly similar, so it ain't entirely a jarring and/or discontinuous experience, or anything. "The Clock", with its paucity of guitar and percussion, and that swingin', Dresdon Dolls-soundin' chorus, represents well how the band has digressed from their initial sound. It's also a nice piece of work in and of its own pretty little self.
