Red Mosquito

durdencommatyler wrote:

stip wrote:I think his point was that I like shit, not that I like everything.

I think for all the shit you get, you actually have pretty decent tastes. People are just assholes.

I'm just a martyr for Backspacer

Is "Generals" a "time and place" record? I've never really heard it that way -- there are some larger sociopolitical themes but nothing that I feel is going to doom the album to "period piece" status.

It's tough for me to choose between the first two albums -- the first one is a purer showcase for Laura's voice (which is arguably the band's greatest asset), but overall the songwriting on "Generals" feels sharper and more accomplished to me. And as good as the first album is, it benefits from having been followed by something less derivative. So it's tough to take one without the other.

I still haven't gotten around to the new one -- from reading the comments it seems like the type of record that requires some dedicated listening, and my life just hasn't been conducive to that lately. It will happen, sooner rather than later hopefully.

I'm loving Generals now, this band is actually fantastic.

Mightier than the Sword

chewm wrote:Mightier than the Sword

Yep

I fucking told you.

Kevin Davis wrote:Is "Generals" a "time and place" record? I've never really heard it that way -- there are some larger sociopolitical themes but nothing that I feel is going to doom the album to "period piece" status.

Maybe it's just me. But I don't get fired up and motivated and focused listening to the album the way I did when it dropped. It's definitely lost some relevance (for lack of a better word) as it's aged and moved away from the time that nursed it.

But again, I still adore the record. I still spin it often and look forward to the next. But it's definitely a "Protest Record." Which certainly doesn't doom it to anything, but it does enhance it's chances of potentially becoming something of period piece; moreso than the other two records.

I guess I'm saying that Generals has nowhere to go but down for me, whereas LK has all the potential (and probability) to rise up and up and up over the years.

I actually listened to generals a few times today. It's a much better record than I was giving it credit for.

stip wrote:I actually listened to generals a few times today. It's a much better record than I was giving it credit for.

You're goddamn right.

I've spent a lot of time listening to Mynabirds the last two days. So it's time for rankings!

Generals:

Karma Debt and Generals are great. Disaster, Disarm, Greatest Revenge, and Body of Work are pretty catchy. Disaster has its minor key thump. Disarm is a lot of fun, and there's a great contrast between the lyrics and the music that helps tone down the preachiness. Same with Body of Work, but I like Disarm a bit more. Greatest Revenge calls to mind some of the timelessness of the first album that was one of its best qualities. I didn't usually make it this far into the album to get to this song. They're all doing interesting things that are playing against deceptively simple initial frameworks. Mightier than the sword is okay. I confess I have a hard time maintaining interest on her long/slow ballads. Buffalo Flower is also fine, but not a standout. Wolf Mother is a bit too abrasive. There are times I quite like it, but not throughout the whole song. I actively dislike Radiator Sister


So the rankings

Generals
Karma Debt
Disarm
***
Body of Work
Greatest Revenge
Disaster
***
Buffalo Flower
Mightier than the sword
Wolf Mother
***
Radiator sister


What we Lose in the Flood

after spending so much time with Lovers Know and Generals this album has actually started to feel a little plain. That was a strength, and the songwriting here may still be the best, but it's feeling a bit unadorned. What we Gained in the Fire and Right Place remain my top two. I love the assertive strength of What We Gained and the simple fading sadness of Right place. Let the Records Go isn't quite at their level, but it anticipates a lot of what I will love in Generals, and it's a nice showcase for the strength in her voice, which is easy to take for granted. Numbers Don't Lie has a 60s soul/motown vibe I like. I really like the pre-chorus in Give it Time but like I said with Pen is Mightier, I tend to get a bit bored with her slower songs. Give it time and silence is a great lyric. Ways of looking goes down nice and easy, but it's almost too smooth. I want a tiny bit more conflict in this song. I always forget how LA rain sounds. It's fine, and flows well with the album, but there's nothing memorable about it. If I could combine Wash It out and Ways of Looking I'd be happy. This one is a tiny bit too assertive for me--it comes across as slightly petulant. We Made a Mountain is a nice showcase for the easy cleverness in her writing, and I like the timeless nightclub cabaret feel of it. Good Heart is a bit featureless in the verses, calling in to mind things done elsewhere in the song that were done a bit better. And the chorus is a bit to full on country for my tastes.

What We Gained in the Fire
Right Place
***
We Made A Mountain
Let the Records Go
Numbers Don't Lie
Ways of Looking
***
Give it Time
Wash It Out
***
LA Rain
Good Heart
Good Heart

Lovers Know
I loved someone's earlier description of this album as casio wanderlust. I stand by my earlier comment that the songwriting has more in common with What we Lose than generals, even if the songs have the fuller arrangements of the latter. All My Heart is a pretty good opener. I like what she did with an overused phrase like all my heart, which refreshed it without really changing its meaning. Believer has grown on me with every listen--a bit more of the drama in the song reveals itself each time. Semantics is a misfire. Her wordplay is extremely good, but she's trying too hard here. I do like the 'water/my love' sequence at the start of the second verse (I think). But otherwise this is a little too poppy in obvious ways. I quite like Say Something--one of my early favorites. There's a throaty, sexy, longing tot this song that's pretty awesome, and the 'something lonely lovers know' lyric is excellent. Orion, like semantics, is a song that is trying too hard to be poppy without the subtly that characterizes her best work, and it gets overwrought in places. It's a better song than Semantics though--there's a soft spot in my heart for anthems. Velveteen reminds me a little bit of Amanda Palmer, which is a good thing for me. It was an early favorite on this album (not that I've had it long), though a few others have overtaken it. The chorus is great. Shake Your Head Yes is another standout--it reminds me of that stretch of surprising songs on Generals. The whole song feels unexpected, even as it repeats itself. Wildfire is, at this point, my favorite song of theirs. 'Ashes to ashes we're born to rust/but there must be a little iron left in us' is probably my favorite lyric she's written, but that hits all my lyrical sweet spots. I love the cracks in her voice and the spunky attitude in the song and the way the whole thing just (appropriately enough) sparks. Omaha has nice moments but is overlong and slightly self-indulgent. One Foot reminds me of a song U2 might write. That's not a bad thing, though. I wish it didn't have that california reveal at the end though (which is also something U2 would have done). Hanged Man, like Omaha, is overlong, but it's a better song. I'm not in love with the chorus, but the verses are good, and the song feels faster than it is,which is nice for these five minute slow burners. Last Time, like Good Heart, feels like a song that's kind of reprising things we've already heard, without adding enough to be worth it. If this ended with Hanged Man we'd lose nothing, even though it's hardly a bad song (including tv/radio noise is a pet peeve of mine. it's almost always pretentious)

Wildfire
Say Something
Shake Your Head Yes
***
All My Heart
Velveteen
One Foot
Hanged Man
***
Believer
Orion
Omaha
Last Time
***
Semantics

now to make my best of mynabirds playlist.

If I'm not mistaken, Greatest Revenge was written much, much earlier than the rest of Generals, shortly after 9/11/01.

I'm surprised you like Say Something so much, considering how you feel about Give It Time (my all time favorite) and Mightier than the Sword.

Have you heard the daytrotter performances that I used in my Awesome Mynabirds Mix?

I have not.

Not sure what my rankings are yet but my favorites from the first album are What we gained in the fire, Numbers Don't Lie, Let the Record Go, Wash it out and We Made a mountain.
From the second one my faves are Karma Debt, Generals, Radiator Sister (this is a wonderful song), Mightier than the Sword and Disarm I think.
I really don't like Semantics but that might change in the context of the album.
These are changing pretty actively tho.

the last two days definitely made me a bigger fan

Disarm is a great song. Probably my second or third favorite.

stip wrote:Disarm is a great song.

Now you're talking sense.