I love albums

As I get into this section of the blogging, it is again one where organization is an issue, because I have a lot to say, and a lot of it runs together, and trying to get things in the right order, and cover all of the relevant points, is tricky. It’s going to get much worse when I get into politics though, so perhaps I should just embrace the randomness and have some fun with it. 

When I was thinking about posting album reviews, it was partly to counter bad writing about music, and also because I have thoughts about things that I listen to, and obviously a strong impulse to share thoughts.

For example, let’s go with My Chemical Romance. I think that if you take Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge and The Black Parade, and swap out “Helena” and “The Ghost of You” for “This is How I Disappear” and “The Sharpest Lives”, it would totally still work. Both albums are fine the way they are. All it really says is that, understandably, there is some overlap between revenge and death, or between the death of your grandmother and death in general. However, I have thought it, and now I have put it out there.

I know I will spend a lot of this segment (which I think will go through Friday) in cranky old person mode, but I think that while there are some ways in which technology has been absolutely great, there are some patterns that have changed where there is a real loss that people may not even be noticing. In this case, the loss would be only listening to hits.

I think I was watching a “Behind the Music” about the Beach Boys, and they were saying how a lot of bands were just about getting one hit and then the rest was filler, but with the Beach Boys every song was a hit. I get what they were saying, in that they were trying to make an entire album of good songs, but at the same time, sometimes there are wonderful songs that are not destined to be hits. They are a little too quiet or weird or outside of the normal, but they still hold a special place, and when you listen to an entire album you can get those.

Also, there can be really interesting things that happen with structure when you listen to a complete album in order. I am not sure whether I like The Black Parade or Danger Days better—I guess I like them both differently, but the structure of The Black Parade is amazing. The way “The End” and “Dead” play into each other sets the stage so well for what is going to come, and ending with “Disenchanted” followed by “Famous Last Words” is perfect, because for all the death, the final message is that “I am not afraid to keep on living”. It’s not that the individual songs don’t stand alone, and there are probably some things you could change with the order in the middle (though it works really well), but ultimately, there is a journey, and then in case it was too heavy you have a bonus track.

There are similar things going on with Danger Days. There is a real story going on, and the order is not accidental. I can’t view it normally, because I have done so much writing to it and about it and inspired by it, that there is just a lot of extra weight there for me, but I’ll tell you this—I really need “Vampire Money” at the end. It’s not just that it is a really vibrant and fun song, but that they do that soundoff in the beginning, and everyone is good, is actually really helpful.

Switching to All-American Rejects, I really thought I was going to review Kids in the Street. (I also thought I was going to review Beautiful Friction by the Fixx, too. They’re all good. Buy them all.) I was listening to it, but also their other albums to make sure I had context, and one thing that I found was that I don’t think I can write coherently about albums. There are ways in which the production values on Kids are way superior. The sound is cleaner than their debut anyway. At the same time, there is a roughness to it, where they leave in some things that sound like warm-ups and goofing off. It is a less synthetic sound than the previous album, I think, and yet they do throw in some effects, on some songs more than others, and also they do some things where notes that would normally be played are sung instead.

I guess what I am trying to say is that even though it sounds like a polished album, it also seems to be experimental, and maybe what this means is that they are growing into a new phase, and developing a new sound, It’s not a refutation of the previous sound, but it is a maturation of the band. What I feel like is that they can be around for a long time and they will keep being interesting.

One thing that I did find interesting is that something Tyson Ritter said in an interview matched something that MCR said in a different interview. (Tyson’s spot was on Clevver Music, and was about Kids in the Street. I don’t remember where the MCR clip was, but it was definitely about Danger Days.) What they both mentioned was about coming at it differently. Pick up a different instrument, or use your regular instrument, but differently, like using your guitar for percussion. That’s not just accidental growth; that is a commitment to never go stale.

That’s where I’m trying to be too. I am trying to grow and develop as a writer, but also I am really trying to listen better. Sometimes I annoy myself, but there are times when I actually feel the insight growing. I get that!

You can mindlessly consume what a radio station says you should hear, or what television says you should hear, but digging deeper brings some great rewards.

I’m going to close with two quotes. One is from the comments on the 100 Greatest Guitarist List. I captured the quote, because I liked it, but foolishly did not capture the username, and now there are 118 pages of comments, and most of them are pointless:

“But a list like this is just for arguments like this one. I know what my list (sic) and it isn’t this one. Eddie, Jimmy, Jimi and John Lee keep fighting for that top spot and I am the better for it.”

Aside from the refreshing perspective where the horrors of the list were not driving him into apoplexy, I like that thought that not being able to give a definitive answer, but having an idea and continuing to think about it, has something beneficial too it. Music is vitally important, and no less so because it is rock, and even no less so if it is (gasp) popular, so good for him for that.

And also, in the wisdom of Frank Iero:

“I like hearing what a band is up to when it’s not just writing a single. I think that’s when you get to really know what a band is all about. That’s when you love a band and not just the music. There’s a big difference between being a music fan, or a popular music fan, and a fan of a band. When you’re a fan of a band, you don’t have to like everything, but you have to follow them, because they know better than you do what their band is supposed to be doing. And when you do follow, and you do give it as many listens as it needs to have for you to like it or to appreciate it, then that band has opened your mind a little bit, and you’re a little better person because of that band, and that’s why you’re a fan of that band.”

I used to be scared when I would get a new album from a band that I liked, because what if I didn’t like it? And then I would be so relieved when I did. I have also had songs and entire albums that needed more that one listen. Again, it’s that willingness to dig deeper, to find more, and to let yourself and others grow.

Rock on.