Emotional Listening #18

The End of the Ring Wars - The Appleseed Cast (Deep Elm, 1998)
I was way into The Appleseed Cast in high school, namely their seminal early 2000s releases Mare Vitalis and both volumes of their Low Level Owl project. The chimey, waterfall guitars, quirky drumming, and experimental soundscapes of those albums are totally my jam, but what a crime it is that for the most part I've overlooked their purely emo debut since I acquired it back in 2001. Without question, The End of the Ring Wars is an obvious nod to Sunny Day Real Estate's Diary, but even more so, Mineral's dynamic emo. It's not perfect by any means, but it's actually a really good record. I'm so used to hearing Chris Crisci's voice buried in the background, so it's interesting to hear him emoting with such ferocity. "Marigold & Patchwork" is an appropriate, drawn out opener, and "Antihero" and "16 Days" are just about on par with my favorite Mineral songs. I've been rekindling my relationship with 90s emo over the past year or so, and it's been fun to realize exactly how good The End of the Ring Wars is, even if it's lacking in the originality department.
Top jams: "Marigold & Patchwork," "Antihero," "Moment #72," "December 27, 1990," "The Last Ring," "16 Days," "Dreamland"


Heroes - David Bowie (RCA, 1977)
When I first got into Heroes a few years ago, I thought it was better than Low hands down. The production, structure and overall weirdness of these records make them outstanding companion pieces, and over time, I've come to recognize that they're pretty even in quality (though, now, I think I slightly prefer Low). Regardless, let's talk about Heroes. I can't think of many ways that are better to open an album with than the one-two-three punch of "Beauty and the Beast," "Joe the Lion" and "Heroes." All three are triumphantly executed pop songs that pretty much sound like nothing else ever recorded. "V-2 Schneider" is a fantastic instrumental, though it doesn't coming close to touching Low's "A New Career in a New Town." Call me crazy, but album closer "The Secret Life of Arabia" is easily one of my favorite Bowie tracks, thanks to its dark, funky feel and stellar drumming. The creepy film score-ish instrumentals are a fascinating twist, but the ones on Low are quite a bit better. That being said, if one was to cut all of those out, and just throw all of these wonderfully bizarre pop songs onto a single, playlist, it would probably be the best record ever.
Top jams: "Beauty and the Beast," "Joe the Lion," "Heroes," "Blackout," "V-2 Schneider," "The Secret Life of Arabia"


Either/Or - Elliott Smith (Kill Rock Stars, 1997)
For a long time, I neglected to spend any time with Elliott Smith's third LP, Either/Or. At some point during my three year residence in Ypsilanti, I caved, and needless to say, was impressed. While not quite as realized as the 1998 follow-up, XO, which I consider to be one of the most outstanding modern pop records, Either/Or proves that Smith's music was well on it's way to sheer genius at that point. "Ball of Big Nothing," "Rose Parade" and "Say Yes" are obviously fantastic pop songs, but I think my favorite moment here might be the subtlety and reservation of opener "Speed Trials." Either/Or might not pack a punch as powerful as XO or even Figure 8, but it doesn't need to. It is a testament to what the talent of this tormented songwriter would amount to, and I don't think I want it to be anything more than that.
Top jams: "Speed Trials," "Ballad of Big Nothing," "Pictures of Me," "Rose Parade," "Angeles," "2:45 AM," "Say Yes"