Didnāt like this at all at first but Iām coming around. Strangely getting a bit hooked on it actually, but Iām not entirely sure if itās because I like it or because I keep wanting it to be something that itās not (probably a bit of both). It still mostly feels like a very promising but sometimes frustratingly underwhelming EP padded out with 35 minutes of āArt.ā Think thereās a much better album hiding in here and I really want to hear it.
I can definitely hear how this has been influential (Grizzly Bear / Slint, Unwound, and Oh Sees were my instant thoughts from the first three songs respectively) and how it probably was a big deal at the time. The drummer is obviously outstanding and adds a lot to the music.
There are some very good moments - most notably the bit that starts at the 4:00 mark of Paperhouse - but I canāt help but feel they could have been arranged a bit differently to maximize impact. Mushroom is so promising (love how menacing it is, and the detached delivery of the simple lyrics) but it never really explodes the way it naturally feels it should and kind of deflates instead. I like that melodic shift halfway through Oh Yeah, and how it quickly morphs into tension just after.
Hated Halleluwah at first but Iām starting to legitimately like it even though itās so jammy. I like the sort of weird dream logic thatās flowing through the song and the first half of the album in general. If the albumās second half had continued down that road then Halleluwah would be even more effective - right now it feels like a jam inserted before a bunch of noise, rather than a surreal album centerpiece carrying you off to Side 2. Really like how the drums basically take over as lead a bit after 2 minutes in and how the whole thing starts pulsing pretty effortlessly just before the 4 minute mark. Oh and that disorienting ascending bit that starts a bit after 15 minutes in is neat, and how it surprisingly breaks out of it with light funk guitars (adding sentences as Iām re-listening, obviously). Guess I like this song after all!
The albumās second half is a massive miss for me though. (Not to open the canon can of worms but feel pretty confident in saying that if The Mars Volta had released this, critics would be saying something very different from āa double album without a wasted note.ā)
I would love to hear a version of this album where the second half is an extension of the first, and the whole thing is a bit more aggressive and explosive (totally get that this probably makes me basic). Right now it feels like a group of skilled musicians jamming and coming up with some great ideas, falling a bit short on assembling them to their full potential, and then sabotaging the promise with 35 minutes of noise collages.
Glad I kept going with this though and didnāt give in to my initial impression. After several listens I can say now that I do like the first four songs. Itās been a neat discovery and Iām a bit fascinated by it.
