Cymbals Eat Guitars - Pretty Years (September 16, 2016) Album • Page 13

I could see abrasive, even harsh, but I don't think they're bad by any means. Maybe if you're looking through the lens of a "traditional" singer (i.e. someone who might win The Voice or American Idol) but they fit the music so well.

 

Just a word. We mostly agree

 

opener is uuuuuuge

 

so i take it you like the album

 

4 songs in im obviously sold this is one of my favorite bands ever

 

definitely moments where the vocals are abrasive but they fit in context and when have joe's vocals not been a challenging aspect of the band

i can't fucking wait for my preorder to come in, really want to see the packaging and hear those demos

 

i've been waiting to hear your thoughts on this one, haha

 

Love this album so much

 

so far: its fuzzy and warm and makes me smile

 

I really hope this album does well for them. I think "Have a Heart" would do really well on alt-rock radio.

Joe is also on this week's episode of Steven Hyden's Celebration Rock podcast. I'm only about halfway through, but it's pretty interesting. He talked about how their performance at Pitchfork in 2009 was something like their 8th show as a band, and that they were terrible, which is funny because that's where I first heard them. I remember there was a lot of buzz around them at the time and I loved their band name so I really wanted to go check them out and have been a fan ever since.

 

@Aaron Mook (or anyone else who got an advance), did you get the lyrics as well?

 

Yeah, the only gripe I even kind of have with the album is how hard it is to understand 80% of what Joe's singing. Lyrics have always been great from him so I'm hoping they publish them again.

 

I was listening to Aerobed again recently, man. I really hope they play that occasionally. I think I would thoroughly enjoy a Jesse Lacey produced Cymbals album. I was just thinking about how I remembered being really stoked when they announced Wish and then being really confused as a result of Aerobed lol. Thank god Wish is good

 

Aerobed is definitely one of their best songs

 

I really loved them talking about it, I think someone (Jesse?) Was like "Why don't you have more choruses? It's really easy. You just sing something, then you sing it again later." And the lyrics to it are really good, good as a LOSE era bside since it fits with the vibe of looking back

 

i like their lack of choruses on WTAM and Lenses :/

 

Did this leak?? All of the pre-release singles are excellent.

 

I still haven't listened to WTAM but I really like Lenses and I don't think the inclusion of choruses has decreased the quality of songwriting or anything. I do think the lack of them contributed to the literary quality of their lyrics, but I think the choruses do something different for them in a similar vein. I'm indifferent as to whether or not they have them tho

 

also that comment by jesse lacey kinda annoys me cause every cymbals record is better than every brand new record

(and from the early self-produced cymbals demos, i would say that joe is probably a better producer than jesse)

oh yeah i don't think the choruses on LOSE make the songs worse or w/e, i just don't think there's anything wrong with not having choruses and that it was one of the qualities that made their first two records interesting

 

Does that matter though? Like obviously they do have an affinity for Jesse as an artist and a producer.

 

I mean, I don't think in the context it was said that it was a criticism as much as a genuine or maybe teasing question. Like, it didn't seem like a dig at their quality is what I mean.
I haven't listened to the new album yet but in the context of LOSE, the choruses were cool because it was all like memory based, and it reminded me of how when you're looking back at specific times of your life you sometimes double back and wonder about the order things happened in, etc. Probably not intentional or anything but it was cool to me.

 

it doesn't

 

I can't lie and say I don't prefer their more "traditionally" structured material, personally. I think that's where Lenses loses me a lot of the time is it has their most wildly structured material on it, which I totally respect but at points it becomes hard to follow for me, which is less endearing to me than it might be for other fans idk. I always feel like such a simpleton because I really just tend to like hooks in my music haha. I sometimes even wrestle with my own band about that stuff in the writing process.

I don't really see Jesse's comment as insulting, but I do find it weird because this band has written choruses/hooks. WTAM and LA both have at least a few between them and nearly every song on LOSE has one.

 

Yeah, they have choruses, but they're not really a traditional song structure band is the implication. Joe has a LOT of lyrics, and Jesse sometimes forgets the ones HE writes lol
Also I think it helps to just do more active listening with Lenses

 

On the contrary, I think since LOSE they have been writing more traditional song structures.

Also, it's not like I haven't actively listened to Lenses. It's an album I've desperately wanted to love the way others seem to and still have yet to, really. I certainly intend to keep trying though. I feel like with each listen I get closer and closer.