56. Release vs. Marker In the Sand

Post by **stip** » Wed March 17, 2021 12:16 am

Release vs. Marker In the Sand

Post by **stip** » Wed March 17, 2021 12:33 am

Marker is an upper middle song on S/T. It was an early favorite when the album came out (and I really went all in for the chorus and the U2esque outro) but it hasn't aged super well. The production does it absolutley no favors (it's a song that needs to sound much richer and robust then it does) and there has always been a bit of a Frankenstein quality to it - a verse and bridge that didn't quite fit with the chorus and outro.

Release is nearly perfect. Every studio version, every live version, they're always as raw as an open wound and as comforting as the bandage that wraps around it.

knee tunes · Post by **knee tunes** » Wed March 17, 2021 12:35 am

stip wrote: always as raw as an open wound and as comforting as the bandage that wraps around it.

that's poetry

PHATJ · Post by **PHATJ** » Wed March 17, 2021 12:38 am

Release

Strat · Post by **Strat** » Wed March 17, 2021 1:18 am

OH dear mom, can you see me now?

wease · Post by **wease** » Wed March 17, 2021 1:27 am

Strat wrote:OH dear mom, can you see me now?

Stardog Champion · Post by **Stardog Champion** » Wed March 17, 2021 1:44 am

Release

And not at all surprising that this is a shutout at this point in the voting.

tragabigzanda · Post by **tragabigzanda** » Wed March 17, 2021 1:48 am

Release is still as beautiful as when it came out, and Marker In the Sand is Marker In The Sand.

Jaeti · Post by **Jaeti** » Wed March 17, 2021 2:06 am

Good vs. Great. Release.

Post by **epilogue** » Wed March 17, 2021 2:33 am

I can't say this is a difficult vote. It isn't. Release is clearly better. But I love Marker so much and I'm so bummed that it's already on its way out of the tournament.

knee tunes · Post by **knee tunes** » Wed March 17, 2021 2:35 am

epilogue wrote:I can't say this is a difficult vote. It isn't. Release is clearly better. But I love Marker so much and I'm so bummed that it's already on its way out of the tournament.

These tournaments make me cringe sometimes.

It's inevitable who the winners are going to be. We all have our favorites and it seems everyone else is out to crush them. Especially trag and wease.

LetMeSleep · Post by **LetMeSleep** » Wed March 17, 2021 2:57 am

Marker for me.

digster · Post by **digster** » Wed March 17, 2021 4:36 am

It's kind of a shame for me to have to vote against Marker this early; there may be no PJ song that's improved more for me over the years than this one. I used to really dislike what I felt what a disjointed and mismatched verse and chorus; whenever I got into the verse, the chorus would arrive and take me out of it. Now, I hear what they were going for; it may still be a tad clunky, which keeps it from being a 5-star song, but the song more than makes up for it everywhere else. I still think that instrumental bridge, and how it launches into the final verse, is one of my favorite PJ moments on record over the past 20 years.

So I'm going with Release, but Marker's having to leave earlier than it should.

Higgs · Post by **Higgs** » Wed March 17, 2021 4:38 am

Release is just special.

VinylGuy · Post by **VinylGuy** » Wed March 17, 2021 1:35 pm

Release is one of the best songs in history period.

Monkey_Driven · Post by **Monkey_Driven** » Wed March 17, 2021 1:39 pm

tragabigzanda wrote:Release is still as beautiful as when it came out, and Marker In the Sand is Marker In The Sand.

PHATJ · Post by **PHATJ** » Wed March 17, 2021 2:01 pm

VinylGuy wrote:Release is one of the best songs in history period.

Jaeti · Post by **Jaeti** » Wed March 17, 2021 3:13 pm

digster wrote:I still think that instrumental bridge, and how it launches into the final verse, is one of my favorite PJ moments on record over the past 20 years.

I like Marker, even though I don't quite think it's great. But this moment of it definitely is.

Post by **stip** » Wed March 17, 2021 4:05 pm

there have been quite a few strong bridge/final verse transitions on the last few albums

Life Wasted
World Wide Suicide
Marker
Gonna See My Friend
Sirens

all come to mind

Jaeti · Post by **Jaeti** » Wed March 17, 2021 5:48 pm

S/T's first five tracks all really have the bridge/transition working.

Red Mosquito