I'm really excited about the album coming out. I'm actually glad there are other people looking forward to it actually being released. In fact, I preordered it off the band website and they promised me a download code to get it digital this friday, but I think I'm still going to wait till it comes in the mail. Or at least, I'm going to wait to listen to the digital copy until Tuesday, since sometimes things arrive in Alaska several weeks after their release date.

And Goathouse, Whaa?

Don't worry Shad, there are others here who wait to hear stuff until release day. Mind you, I don't mean that to insult anyone else here, just making a comment.

And I am guessing goathouse remembers a little something I asked list makers to do. I asked that if they had albums on their lists that haven't been released yet, to please place asterisks next to them. So I guess, in his terms, it is out.

Gotcha, Fragile.

Yeah, about Meiburg. I think it will be a very big loss to Okkervil. I really trust that Sheff understands what he is doing. but, there will definitely be something missing, and although I can't see it happening, it's very probable that it will come out in the music.

I think there is an interesting discussion to be had in how great bands have multiple musical talents in them. I think a real great band needs the editorial, critical, encouraging and creative response that a second like minded musician can bring to the collective. I could name probably 30 bands that meet that description, off the top of my head. And I could name probably 20 of those that dropped off in quality after the creative minds parted ways.

quote:

Originally posted by Shadrach:
I think there is an interesting discussion to be had in how great bands have multiple musical talents in them.

Oh you are just looking for more reasons to gush about Wolf Parade!

quote:

Originally posted by FragileKidA:

quote:

Originally posted by Shadrach:
I think there is an interesting discussion to be had in how great bands have multiple musical talents in them.

Oh you are just looking for more reasons to gush about Wolf Parade!

Funny, I actually had momentarily forgotten about Wolf Parade, but that's a perfect example.

This past week I have been hard at work on a They Might Be Giants "best of" for a friend of mine, and I'm realizing how impossibly hard it is to make a "Best of.." for The Giants. But John Flansburg and John Linnell absolutely need each other to make music. Together they are genius, either of them alone is simply interesting.

quote:

Originally posted by Shadrach:
I think there is an interesting discussion to be had in how great bands have multiple musical talents in them. I think a real great band needs the editorial, critical, encouraging and creative response that a second like minded musician can bring to the collective. I could name probably 30 bands that meet that description, off the top of my head. And I could name probably 20 of those that dropped off in quality after the creative minds parted ways.

Interesting theory here, you're onto something I think. Examples...Weezer, Unicorns->Islands come to mind immediately. Who else?

Weezer and the Unicorns are good examples. I also like the example of Pavement. It turns out Malkmus needed Spiral Stairs as much as Corgan needed Iha in the Smashing Pumpkins. Spiral Stairs and Iha really weren't that wonderful of song writters in their own right, but they were essential to holding the balance of the major genius. Mind you, Stephen Malkumus is much better alone than Billy Corgan, but the example stands.

More examples of bands that had a musical masterminds that proved they weren't as strong without their side-kick: At the Drive In, Depeche Mode (one case where the sidekick Martin Gore is actually stronger than the super hero David Gahan), Archers of loaf, Super Furry Animals.

I'm convinced the genius of Neutral Milk Hotel was much much more than just Jeff Mangum. Listen to Jeremy Barnes' A Hawk and a Hacksaw, and then see what he went on to do partnered with Zack Condon in Beirut. Jeremy Barnes is maybe not a musical genius, but he is the quintessential Side-Kick charater required for a great band.

Other more recent acts with Side-kicks.
Death Cab for Cutie (Chris Walla), Spoon (Jim Eno), Radiohead (Johnny Greenwood), The Wrens (Greg Whelan), Grizzly Bear (Ed Droste), Arcade Fire (Régine Chassagne), Cracker (Johnny Hickman), Animal Collective (Panda Bear).

Which of course leads us full circle to Okkervil River, with Jonathan Meiburg playing straight man to Will Sheff's bipolar monster genius. I can't imagine Okkervil River being weak in the future, but history is showing us that Batman doesn't work quite as well without Robin.

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but history is showing us that Batman doesn't work quite as well without Robin.

Bad example.

Actually... do we know if Meiburg did a lot of work on Stand-Ins? I know he's in "Lost Coastlines" (his duet with Sheff is one of the album's many highlights) but I don't know how involved he is with the rest of the record.

Well, it wasn't announced until this year that Meiburg was leaving the band, seemingly after finishing the latest album. But Okkervil River are great at giving detailed liner notes outlining who contributed what so I will let you know when I get my copy.

I bet anything this album was 80% complete when Stage Names was released. I'm thinking they wrote and arranged all the songs at the same time, but didn't want to release them in a double album. So they just made them two separate albums, and divided them between two different years. This means Meiburg was either directly involved in the writing, arranging, and playing of the songs, or they were at least made with his ghost still in the room (so to speak). A year or so from now, we will really start to see what Okkervil sounds like without him.

Robin is a little bitch... No one needs robin.

But i like that little side-discussion. Wilco is another band where the players also contribute massively to the band (Glenn Kotche how i love thee)

Flaming Lips are a really good example as well. Without Stephen Drozd, i don't think the Lips would be too much of anything.

That said, i think of Okkervil River as one of those bands that are essentially a solo-project with a good backing band (unlike a counter-example, like the Hold Steady, where the backing band is absolutely essential to Craig Finn's songwriting). I do think the band behind Sheff is great, at times even essential, but I'm curious to see who's on The Stand-Ins, because it's my favorite OR album yet.

quote:

Originally posted by RavingLunatic:
I listened to The Stage Names a couple days ago, and it did hit me hard. "Savannah Smiles" makes me cry, literally. I had tears going down my face at 5 AM in my car on the highway on the way to work. That song is something special, much like "For Real" and "Black" from Black Sheep Boy. I'd say there's nothing quite like that on the new one, but there's not a weak song either, and I really like it. And if Stage Names is any indication, it'll only get better with time.

Savannah Smiles was my number 1 song last year. It may be one of my top ten favorite songs ever. That song's melody alone is devastating, and then to combine it with those lyrics...

Not to turn this into a cry-fest but that song made me weep like a schoolgirl too. I can't imagine how a parent with a little girl would react to this song. It captures the helpless feeling of parenting that even if you do a good job, everything might not turn out as planned - and the regret one would feel if something tragic did happen. You would seemingly always wonder if you did everything you could. (**shudders**) Ok, maybe I don't want kids.

One more thing, I always thought this song was from the mother's point-of-view. The "Joe turns the tv on with all the lights out" lyric made me think that Joe was the father. You guys think Will was singing from the father's point of view?

This message has been edited. Last edited by: musicfanatic,

Nice to see someone else who loves that song as much as I do. You know, I never thought of whether it was written from the mother or father's point of view. I think you're probably right about it being the mother. I guess I just always made the assumption it was the father just because Sheff is a guy.

quote:

Originally posted by musicfanatic:

quote:

Originally posted by RavingLunatic:
I listened to The Stage Names a couple days ago, and it did hit me hard. "Savannah Smiles" makes me cry, literally. I had tears going down my face at 5 AM in my car on the highway on the way to work. That song is something special, much like "For Real" and "Black" from Black Sheep Boy. I'd say there's nothing quite like that on the new one, but there's not a weak song either, and I really like it. And if Stage Names is any indication, it'll only get better with time.

Savannah Smiles was my number 1 song last year. It may be one of my top ten favorite songs ever. That song's melody alone is devastating, and then to combine it with those lyrics...

Not to turn this into a cry-fest but that song made me weep like a schoolgirl too. I can't imagine how a parent with a little girl would react to this song. It captures the helpless feeling of parenting that even if you do a good job, everything might not turn out as planned - and the regret one would feel if something tragic did happen. You would seemingly always wonder if you did everything you could. (**shudders**) Ok, maybe I don't want kids.

One more thing, I always thought this song was from the mother's point-of-view. The "Joe turns the tv on with all the lights out" lyric made me think that Joe was the father. You guys think Will was singing from the father's point of view?

I am the father or a 5 year old girl, and that song just devastates me every time I hear it. I literally choke up, because I can't help but think of myself in that same position 15 years down the road. It does make me want to do everything I can to protect her, and teach her how to protect herself.

I've always wondered about the Joe lyric, but never thought that the song was from the mother's perspective. You may be right.

I got my copy of The Stand-Ins today in the mail. Along with a post of both the Stage Names and Stand-Ins, a cool advertisement for the Will Sheff/Charles Bissell exclusive 7" single. I freaked out when I saw the package, because I thought they had accidentally sent me a vinyl. But it's a sweet package. And I would love to get my hands on the Will/Charles songs.

My first impressions of the album are that it's really really good. It has a differnt mood, and a different feel than Stage Names. My only valid criticism of it at this time is that it's so short. 40 minutes with only 7 real songs is not a lot to chew on. I put it on at work and it was over before I knew it. I listened to it twice through at one point and still felt like it needed to keep going. This is good of course, because that means it's solid over those 40 minutes, but I think I'm going to have to link it to Stage Names from now on.

I'm going to try to come up with a good tracklisting to mix the two albums together. I think it will be an interesting challenge. And I like tracklisting challenges.

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This just in!
I'm really enjoying the guest artist covers I've been avoiding, that were released to YouTube prior to the album being released. And although on the album "Blue Tulips" is my least favorite song, the Bon Iver cover is AMAZING. I'm not a rabid Bon Iver fan like some people on this board, but seriously, had Bon Iver had studio recorded it and added to Stand-Ins I would have had a hard time not considering it my favorite song on the album.

By the way. My favorite on the album is "Starry Stairs". It makes me want to learn how to play guitar.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Shadrach,

It is so wrong of me to be envious but I am, I'm sorry. I have no idea when mine will come in (probably not for another week or two) and I doubt it will come with all the cool extras you got. Enjoy it man.

By the way, quit griping about how you wish every other album was a long 90-minute double album of pretentious music, sheesh

Dude, no need to be sour.

I live in a one bed room apartment with a wife that isn't too into rock bands. I have no where to even put the posters. I'll send them to you if you would like them, and could really appreciate them.

I learned a while back that if you are ever going to pre-order an album, you should order it directly from the label. they pretty much always send you free stuff, it arrives sooner (often before it's release), and it's always cheaper. And people at the labels are cool and will respond to your emails, unlike something like Amazon. It also makes me feel like I'm supporting the artist and the record label a little more.

So, anyway. I hope it didn't seem like I was gloating about anything. I was just excited I guess.

I think it's maybe time to take a bit of a vacation from the board. I'm starting to question what I'm really doing here.

Why do all the cool posters take vacations from the board? JGlass, mark, BlackGravel... now Shadrach?

Soon only I'll be left.

No Shad, don't take a vacation, there is no need for one. And if it means anything, I don't think you are doing anything wrong on these boards and I appreciate your contributions.

As for you Cham, well, why you little...