Red Mosquito

McParadigm wrote:

LoathedVermin72 wrote:Knowing that McP likes "Just Breathe" makes me look at him totally differently

JB has the same basic underlying affections and fears of Sirens, but doesn't bombast them to the point of what I assume Creed would have sounded like in 2020 if Scott Stapp hadn't gotten into experimental performance art and Rob Thomas had helped write melodies...like that song does.

It's rare that Pearl Jam is willing to let a quiet song get as quiet as it deserves to be. The best case example is Around the Bend. And these days, JB is as close as they get to "unbloated," which is what insecure but loving odes ought to be.

I genuinely appreciate that whole record for wanting to present a side of the band's sound that is unique in the catalog. "They tried a new thing and that thing was corny" is way less of a tragedy in my eyes than "they did the thing they always did before but only as best they are now able, because it's all about keeping the flock." Backspacer is the only record post-Riot Act where I hear any genuine romance...any sense that one or two songs birthed from pure idea and not from being measured mathematically at the songwriting level (versus the production level) for maximum impact.

LoathedVermin72 wrote:Knowing that McP likes "Just Breathe" makes me look at him totally differently

McParadigm wrote:Yeah, The End is a vast improvement on the same template, but that song is well served by having a lesser, younger brother slip through and establish some things earlier on. Sort of like how Brothers in Arms is able to expand on a mood semi-introduced by Your Latest Tricks, but with much greater weight and consequence.

McParadigm wrote:

LoathedVermin72 wrote:Knowing that McP likes "Just Breathe" makes me look at him totally differently

JB has the same basic underlying affections and fears of Sirens, but doesn't bombast them to the point of what I assume Creed would have sounded like in 2020 if Scott Stapp hadn't gotten into experimental performance art and Rob Thomas had helped write melodies...like that song does.

It's rare that Pearl Jam is willing to let a quiet song get as quiet as it deserves to be. The best case example is Around the Bend. And these days, JB is as close as they get to "unbloated," which is what insecure but loving odes ought to be.

I genuinely appreciate that whole record for wanting to present a side of the band's sound that is unique in the catalog. "They tried a new thing and that thing was corny" is way less of a tragedy in my eyes than "they did the thing they always did before but only as best they are now able, because it's all about keeping the flock." Backspacer is the only record post-Riot Act where I hear any genuine romance...any sense that one or two songs birthed from pure idea and not from being measured mathematically at the songwriting level (versus the production level) for maximum impact.

LoathedVermin72 wrote:

McParadigm wrote:

LoathedVermin72 wrote:Knowing that McP likes "Just Breathe" makes me look at him totally differently

JB has the same basic underlying affections and fears of Sirens, but doesn't bombast them to the point of what I assume Creed would have sounded like in 2020 if Scott Stapp hadn't gotten into experimental performance art and Rob Thomas had helped write melodies...like that song does.

It's rare that Pearl Jam is willing to let a quiet song get as quiet as it deserves to be. The best case example is Around the Bend. And these days, JB is as close as they get to "unbloated," which is what insecure but loving odes ought to be.

I genuinely appreciate that whole record for wanting to present a side of the band's sound that is unique in the catalog. "They tried a new thing and that thing was corny" is way less of a tragedy in my eyes than "they did the thing they always did before but only as best they are now able, because it's all about keeping the flock." Backspacer is the only record post-Riot Act where I hear any genuine romance...any sense that one or two songs birthed from pure idea and not from being measured mathematically at the songwriting level (versus the production level) for maximum impact.

Yeah, I get what you're saying and I don't even disagree with you. But Jesus fucking Christ, "Just Breathe" is one of the most unlistenable, embarrassing pieces of shit I've ever heard. Musically and vocally, I think it's the worst thing the band has ever recorded, regardless of whether the lyrics are better than other songs in the catalog. This is an old debate, but lyrics don't really amount to all that much if your song sounds like garbage.

LoathedVermin72 wrote:

McParadigm wrote:

LoathedVermin72 wrote:Knowing that McP likes "Just Breathe" makes me look at him totally differently

JB has the same basic underlying affections and fears of Sirens, but doesn't bombast them to the point of what I assume Creed would have sounded like in 2020 if Scott Stapp hadn't gotten into experimental performance art and Rob Thomas had helped write melodies...like that song does.

It's rare that Pearl Jam is willing to let a quiet song get as quiet as it deserves to be. The best case example is Around the Bend. And these days, JB is as close as they get to "unbloated," which is what insecure but loving odes ought to be.

I genuinely appreciate that whole record for wanting to present a side of the band's sound that is unique in the catalog. "They tried a new thing and that thing was corny" is way less of a tragedy in my eyes than "they did the thing they always did before but only as best they are now able, because it's all about keeping the flock." Backspacer is the only record post-Riot Act where I hear any genuine romance...any sense that one or two songs birthed from pure idea and not from being measured mathematically at the songwriting level (versus the production level) for maximum impact.

Yeah, I get what you're saying and I don't even disagree with you. But Jesus fucking Christ, "Just Breathe" is one of the most unlistenable, embarrassing pieces of shit I've ever heard. Musically and vocally, I think it's the worst thing the band has ever recorded, regardless of whether the lyrics are better than other songs in the catalog. This is an old debate, but lyrics don't really amount to all that much if your song sounds like garbage.

stip wrote:

LoathedVermin72 wrote:

McParadigm wrote:

LoathedVermin72 wrote:Knowing that McP likes "Just Breathe" makes me look at him totally differently

JB has the same basic underlying affections and fears of Sirens, but doesn't bombast them to the point of what I assume Creed would have sounded like in 2020 if Scott Stapp hadn't gotten into experimental performance art and Rob Thomas had helped write melodies...like that song does.

It's rare that Pearl Jam is willing to let a quiet song get as quiet as it deserves to be. The best case example is Around the Bend. And these days, JB is as close as they get to "unbloated," which is what insecure but loving odes ought to be.

I genuinely appreciate that whole record for wanting to present a side of the band's sound that is unique in the catalog. "They tried a new thing and that thing was corny" is way less of a tragedy in my eyes than "they did the thing they always did before but only as best they are now able, because it's all about keeping the flock." Backspacer is the only record post-Riot Act where I hear any genuine romance...any sense that one or two songs birthed from pure idea and not from being measured mathematically at the songwriting level (versus the production level) for maximum impact.

Yeah, I get what you're saying and I don't even disagree with you. But Jesus fucking Christ, "Just Breathe" is one of the most unlistenable, embarrassing pieces of shit I've ever heard. Musically and vocally, I think it's the worst thing the band has ever recorded, regardless of whether the lyrics are better than other songs in the catalog. This is an old debate, but lyrics don't really amount to all that much if your song sounds like garbage.

What exactly is it about Just Breathe that makes it one of the most unlistenable, embarrassing pieces of shit you've ever heard?

I agree with LV.

bada wrote:I'm sure LV will lay out an argument that will satisfy you Stip.

stip wrote:

bada wrote:I'm sure LV will lay out an argument that will satisfy you Stip.

the best part about that thread is that I discovered the death battles website.

stip wrote:

bada wrote:I'm sure LV will lay out an argument that will satisfy you Stip.

the best part about that thread is that I discovered the death battles website.