After a few spins, I think yall were way too harsh on the 2nd half of this. I think this is a great record and a return to form after Coming Home, which was okay to blah IMO. My only complaint is the closer. TDS has typically always had an amazing closing track but this left a lot to be desired.
Giving this another listen on my commute home from the soco show. That lead guitar tone on With My Pen is like nails on a chalkboard. Could’ve been a great song without that.
I mean it! There are so many long-running acts that I love who seem to be in ruts right now because they're no longer listening to outside voices. They either work with the same producers/songwriters every time, or they self-produce and don't cowrite with anyone, or they hire people who will do a serviceable job but not really push them. It's always nice to hear something where there was clearly a little more push and pull.
I always tell my artists that with a platform and opportunity comes the responsibility to contribute. The problem I continue to see is a lack of artistry and genuine music appreciation and more so a focus being on “product, merch, tour, repeat.” These projects are just looking for admiration from fans and validation through data. And the irony is the data shows that making content that contributes with longevity in mind is the only way to succeed. But they all just lose sight of this and get stuck in a “get it done fast and cheap” mindset. “it doesn’t need to be perfect. Kids will like it and buy it regardless because we are gods gift to music”
Got around to this & also felt like it was a snooze fest. Not much of a fan of anything here. I know that the first two records are hard to top & I still can’t fathom how they made those records, but even MN, GR, & Self Titled had moments where they got close. The EP & these last two records don’t even come close. It’s probably not fair that I hold everything they do, to the first two records as the standard set for this band. Saying it’s better than Coming Home feels like such a low bar & it doesn’t really even feel better. But oh well, we have the first two records!
I think Pacific Ocean and what’s an hour really worth are stellar tracks. Gravity has really started to grate on me over time tbh and I’d be happy to never hear him sing “I’ve been on my shit since day one” ever again. Fuckin post Malone ass lyric.
I love this post so much because it applies to more than just music. Its not what you do, but why you do it.
1st listen I was a little underwhelmed as there is that straightaway of 3 Ballad esque songs that really takes the feel of the album in another direction. But on second listen, it's much much better. Even the "slower" ones. I think this one may take repeated listens... As for the production, I'm sensing some of the later songs have more triggered drum sounds to acoustic drum ratio in the mix. And i usually do not like that sound as much. Not here too bad, but It starts to sound like Tupperware in it's worst incarnations
Yeah this album is fine to me. It’s better than the abysmal last album, but will probably still land as a bottom 3 in their catalog. I wonder what staying power it will have. I’ll prob still see them on tour because they’re playing a random ass venue for the MA date in the town next to me lol
It makes me grateful for all the artists I love that have taken big risks and creative left turns throughout their career. A lot of those things drew backlash from fans (and sometimes) from me over the year, ranging from “Why did Dylan go electric?!” to “Why did Springsteen fire the E Street Band?” to scene stuff like “Why did Dashboard go electric?” and lots of “Why is the album so poppy?” Sometimes, I’ve bristled at artists going outside their comfort zones and not playing to their strengths when the result really doesn’t work. But the alternative is something like this, where someone just gets in a comfortable routine and churns out more of the same over and over again, without growing as an artist or challenging themselves to do something better. Makes me appreciate all those big swings more, whether they connected or not, as necessary moves to keep things fresh as the years go on.
Yeah, I dunno, it’s okay. The writing generally seems more interesting than on Coming Home, at least. Didn’t think the dropoff in the second half was really that noticeable. Maybe it’s unfair, but I just can’t bring myself to muster much more than a “meh” for anything since Mother Nature.
I’d argue you take the best 2 from Coming Home, the best of this, a song from the EP and a Broken Glowstick song or two and you have a solid entry. Definitely a quantity over quality issue. but I’m enjoying this more with each listen. Nothing groundbreaking, but a solid backyard beer on a nice day summer album.
Cutting out Wild One and Stratosphere from my playlist. Those are just snoozers for me. Clouds grew on me. Opener and the singles are definitely still the standouts
4th listen getting better and better. I think I was influenced by some of the comments here before I listened, anticipating a slower ballad like second half. But there's some upbeat ones for sure there. I just think the final two tracks aren't the strongest here. And it could have possibly been a 10 song album and stronger for it. The production is decent, but when I popped on their self titled right after, everything seemed less squished and breathed a bit more. Pop on This is Life after a track on here and you'll see
Catholic Girls This Is Life Ghosts Come Down Coming Home Sideways Dimensional Love I Feel More Like Myself Pacific Ocean Gravity What's An Hour Really Worth Infinite That is my great TDS album made up of everything outside the big 3 of RFTS, War Paint, Mother Nature
There are four songs I really like here ("Pacific Ocean," "What's an Hour Really Worth," "Where Did All the Time Go," and "Dream") and then a lot I'm still pretty "meh" on.