Emotional Listening #38

Outgoing Behavior - Crystal Skulls (Suicide Squeeze, 2006)
I believe it was my bud Julian who tipped me off to Crystal Skulls not along after their sophomore effort, Outgoing Behavior, was released. Aside from the title track and "The Cosmic Door," which are still far and away the best tracks here, I don't think I entirely got it until now. This is some nice soft rock (think Fleetwood Mac, Steely Dan, Hall & Oates) with a mid-aughts guitar pop lean, showcasing some intelligent, moderately complex arrangements and extremely impressive musicianship. Fun fact: members of Crystal Skulls went on to join Sufjan Steven's touring band and Fleet Foxes. At this stage in my life, I prefer Crystal Skulls.
Top jams: "Outgoing Behavior," "Baby Boy," "The Cosmic Door," "Treat It Well," "Brigantine Castles," "Sedate & Satisfied"



Hashin' It Out - Euphone (Jade Tree, 2000)
Euphone were a very bizarre act to be on Jade Tree Records. Not so much in personnel (the band was made up of Ryan Rapsys and Nick Macri, both former members of Gauge and Heroic Doses, and Rapsys had done time in Joan of Arc and Owls, while Macri also had been in C-Clamp), but, in sound. Hashin' It Out was the group's third LP, and it is all over the place. Opener, "Gyrations," sounds like the unfortunately dubbed "chillwave" subgenre that was big in 2009 (and, this record came out in 2000!). "Nick is Ryan" and "My Ladies Can't Remember the Eighties" are cool, modern takes on jazz music. "Honey, I'll be Home by Suppertime" is a moody Chicago-style post-rock ballad. The two best moments, though, are "Press On" and "Bad Ascending," which feature outright tropical vibes and sound like The Sea and Cake on speed. The instrumental, forward thinking music of Euphone might not be for everyone, but, I hope everyone can at least appreciate the awesome album cover.
Top jams: "Gyrations," "Press On," "Where's the B?," "Bad Ascending," "Shut It," "Nick is Ryan," "Honey, I'll be Home by Suppertime," "My Ladies Can't Remember the Eighties"





Quiet is the New Loud - Kings of Convenience (Astralwerks, 2001)
I'm not going to argue if anyone thinks that some Kings of Convenience songs sound a little too much like Jack Johnson or something. Just know that those happen to be their worst songs, and they're few and far between, the rest of their material is SO MUCH better. Quiet is the New Loud was their debut LP, and the music within is essentially acoustic guitar and vocal duets (the harmonizing on this record is amazing), with sparse, but, slightly more extravagant arrangements thrown in periodically. Thus, the best and most obvious comparison is Simon & Garfunkel. The best songs are the first two: "Winning a Battle, Losing the War" and "Toxic Girl." The record loses it's way a little bit after that, but, it is still some downright gorgeous folk music.
Top jams: "Winning a Battle, Losing the War," "Toxic Girl," "Singing Softly to Me," "Failure," "The Weight of My Words," "Leaning Against the Wall," "Little Kids"





Moondance - Van Morrison (Warner Bros., 1970)
Obviously, I've known about Van Morrison since I was a little kid mainly due to "Brown Eyed Girl." Moondance has really only been on my radar, though, since 2002, and I have the final scene and ending credits of The Royal Tenenbaums to thank for that. When the harpsichord of "Everyone" starts the transition from  film ending to credits rolling, it never fails to make me smile at one of my favorite films of all time. Anyway, I remember my friend (and roommate at the time) Abbott being really into Moondance during my freshman year of college, and that's where my interest in it was first planted. Then, during my sophomore year, Bravender put "Caravan" on a classic rock mix he made for me, and it has since become one of my favorite songs ever. I should have known that the rest of the record was just about as good. I won't deny that the title track is cheesy, but it's still a decent song! The non-"Caravan" or "Everone" best has to be "Into the Mystic," which is totally my type of autumn folk jam. Overall, Moondance is just about a perfect, wonderfully orchestrated classic pop record.
Top jams: "And It Stoned Me," "Crazy Love," "Caravan," "Into the Mystic," "Come Running," "These Dreams of You," "Everyone"





Rock Collection - Pond (Work, 1997)
I don't know a lot about the 90s Portland, Oregon band Pond, aside from the fact that everything I've heard thus far has been awesome. Unfortunately, I started with their final album, Rock Collection, but, it happens to be really great. Like, so great that if the rest of their stuff is this good, they could come to be considered a "favorite band." They formed in 1991, and I'm not sure if they were thrown in much with the Seattle grunge movement, but, I guess you could say there is a slight grunge feel to their sound. That's only a tiny part of it, though. The rhythm section here is huge and drives the songs forward, while the guitars sometimes chug along and sometimes meander. The vocal melodies are extremely catchy, which is the main draw in places, but, it's a nice contrast with the unique guitar playing. "Spokes" is a great introduction to the band (probably the best, at least on this record), but "Greyhound" is my favorite song. On Rock Collection, I'd describe Pond as a mix of Weezer, Built to Spill and the more melodic of the Albini-rock bands. Check 'em out.
Top jams: "Spokes," "You're Not an Astronaut," "Scoliosis," "Flawed," "My Dog is an Astronaut, Though," "Forget," "Golden," "Greyhound," "Rebury Me," "Filterless"