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opinions were like kittens i was giving them away. -modest mouse
there's nothing as something as one. -e. e. cummings
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Wheat
Per Second, Per Second, Per Second… Every Second
Sony
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I can sometimes be called a seasonal listener, that is, occasionally I like to listen to music that reflects my perception of the seasons. Summer is all about the unpolished, more soulful if you will, and faster songs, songs that are great to hear on the rare occasion that I do roll the window down on a hot day, bands that fit with the hot thick air of summer shows, indoor venues where you leave wet and a little delirious and outdoor ones where you leave grassy and invigorated. Modest Mouse is all about summer for me, and it’s a time when I also pull out the older classics like The Pixies and Talking Heads. Fall finally cools things down and calls for something far different, the Tom Waits and those similar rich, somewhat haunting, somewhat twisted, introspective tunes, and even a little, yes, Tori Amos, call out to be played. Winter’s tough, I usually look for something new, and find a few gems here and there. But then there’s spring…after years of favoring winter, I finally came around to the spring, though deep down I know that April may be the cruelest month. Cruel with its promises, the green countryside, sturdy bulbs springing up from a dark place I’d forgotten about, and with promising songs. Love songs even.
Track listing:
01 I Met A Girl
02 Breathe For Me Now
03 These Are The Things
04 Life Still Applies
05 Go Get The Cops
06 Some Days
07 World United Already
08 Hey, So Long Ohio
09 The Beginner
10 Can't Wash It Off
11 Closer To Mercury
12 This Rough Magic
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So I found Wheat while listening to 3WK, and I did something rare for me. I bought a song of theirs from iTunes after only one listen, “I Met a Girl.” It was such a refreshing sound that I could not resist. These are poppish upbeat tunes with a largely (though not completely) upbeat tone to them. They seem to make even sad situations sound happy, I love it when a band can wear a smile while singing about things like lost love. Take the song “Closer to Mercury” for example, which starts with upbeat repeated piano chords and the words, “and I would have walked behind, and I would have walked beside you, and I would have told you every lie, and I would have done that for ya’. Open your eyes sometimes, it’s funny how I adore ya’, I’m going to get every line just fine I’ll even sing it for you now…” and continue with even sweeter lines and sing it like it’s great just to think of what could have been, and genuinely.
This is something else I love about this band, how genuine they sound. Their songs aren’t trying to fit into any of the trendy music styles of today, and they’re not trying to be different. They’re full of simple chords, and devoid of pretension or contrived ideas. Simple, yet placed together so elegantly. These songs have seemingly perfect layering, chord changes, tempo changes, and pauses. Very smooth yet with just enough drama added to speak to me in a way I can understand, straight from their hearts to my ears. The instrumentation is equally lovely, they even pull off a trumpet solo. They didn’t start so bright…the previous albums may have been…more autumnal. Their beginnings took place in singer-guitarist Scott Levesque's living/bedroom and they later had help from Dave Auchenbach (ex-Small Factory) and Brian Deck (Red Red Meat). And now considering that Brian helped Wheat on their first release, produced Modest Mouse's The Moon and Antarctica as well as contributed to Ugly Casanove, I’m starting to think that everything he touches turns to gold. But back to Wheat…
“Summer love moves fast and you get a little slow when the fall moves past…winter slows the pace, spring brings the summer back to your face,” and they brought a little to mine. So for now, while their songs develop like the warm air sweeping in, I’m enjoying them, the tone fits well. And while I know April can be cruel, that doesn’t mean I’m not going to enjoy and even believe every last bit of it while it lasts.
-Jennifer Hall 03/11/04
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