Track Rating
- It's a Hit 2
- Does He Love You? 5
- Portions for Foxes 3
- Ripchord 3
- I Never 4
- The Absence of God 1
- Accidntel Deth 0
- More Adventurous 2
- Love and War (11/11/46) 0
- A Man/Me/Then Jim 3
- It Just Is 2
Rilo Kiley's fourth studio album is a delightful indie-pop record with a diverse assortment of sounds and singing. The sound of the album is, well, adventurous, while lyrically exploring different perspectives on things like love, God, marriage, suicide, and death. Jenny Lewis's singing is a treat on nearly all of the tracks, and has great accompaniment from the rest of her band. She can be sweet and somber as good as she can be poppy and even powerful.
The first half of the album is quite consistent, containing two tracks that I absolutely adore. Sprinkled with political commentary, a character study, catchy pop, powerful country, and a sweet acoustic tune, it's quite an adventure. The consistency in the second half drops down with a number of tracks, while having their merits, overall are skip-able. That said, there is still a great somber ethnic tinged track and two other good tracks. There is enough great material on here for me to call it an excellent release.
1. It's a Hit
Melody: 2
Arrangement: 3
Structure: 1
Emotional: 2
Overall: 2
Nice amount of variety musically, changing riffs and sounds. Little things like salt shaker effects, chimes, backup vocals, horns, bass drum in the right speaker. Lewis does a great job with the chorus and a good job with the laid back delivery of lines.
Chorus lyrics don't do it for me. Pretty crappy lyrics, old and uninspired political commentary especially by 2004. Variety doesn't completely save the short repeated melody.
The upbeat and catchy sound works well with the vocals and cynical message, especially on the first several listens. However, the lyrics and repetitive melody get worse the more I listen to it.
2. Does He Love You?
Melody: 4
Arrangement: 4
Structure: 3
Emotional: 5
Overall: 5
Somber and slow introduction, sad lonely instrument underlining the opening lines. Good lyrics and developed story. Great vocal delivery, starting slow and sad and slowly building up. Music does a great job of supporting the story and moods throughout, slowly adding things as the song goes along. Keeps the melancholic mood and sound when changing melodies. Shifting moods of hope and despair back and forth. Good baselines and drumming throughout. Love the riff where the narrator gets all happy in her dream that he is calling her. Great climax, and conclusion, with her coming back to reality. Wonderful composition of strings at the end in a variation of the melody.
Transition to reality with "Let's not forget ourselves" is a little abrupt and lacks some of the emotional change I would imagine occured.Conclusion music isn't as sad or insane as I would like it, until maybe the very end. .Out of place on the disc.
Despair is captured nicely with over-analyzing what he has said and what the narrator thinks can happen. First thinking its hopeless, that the other girl and her love will have a baby and open a shop, but then remembering what he probably wrote to the narrator, the narrator plays out a whole huge scenario about how he will leave the other girl. And narrator's dream isn't only about him leaving, but the other girl wanting to get back together only to find him talking to the narrator.
(Or it could be what kaleidoscopeeyes8 says here: http://www.songmeanings.net/songs/view/3530822107858506428/ with letters which is also interesting and probably what was actually meant)
Love how the music supports it, starting to get a little frantic and busy like her thoughts are racing when he thinks of him loving the other girl. When she begins to imagine them breaking up, the melody subtlety changes and becomes much happier. When thinking of how the other girl wants him back, you hear her get loud and almost a little bit happier. Finally, coming back to reality, when she says "He will never leave you for me", the guitar mimics the same vocal melody, as if to underline it and solidify her realization. Then there are some light distorted guitars, but most of the emotion and distress, I suppose, is captured well enough with the last sounds from the layered strings.
3. Portions for Foxes
Melody: 3
Arrangement: 2
Structure: 1
Emotional: 3
Overall: 3
Catchy beat and melody. Good changes in sound and riffs throughout the song. Not bad singing, especially some entertaining lines like "C'MERE". Awesome guitar sound after 2nd chorus. Good ending
Chorus is okay. Lyrics are a little hard to follow and repetitive.
4. Ripchord
Melody: 3
Arrangement: 2
Structure: 2
Emotional: 4
Overall: 3
Nice change of pace, relaxing introduction. Great singing for the song. Effective guitar strumming rhythm. I like the lyrics, and it is a nice short song. Elliott Smith style.
5. I Never
Melody: 5
Arrangement: 4
Structure: 2
Emotional: 4
Overall: 4
Great surprising sound that was very unexpected. Amazing singing. Strong drumming, supportive, not boring, perhaps the best on the album along with #11. Clear, authoritative, and not overpowering. The strings are great. Good subtle use of piano and xylophone and it is all put together nicely. Great lyrics of what first seems like enduring love. Bennett's jazzy guitar coda comes out of no where and is a definite highlight.
Voice gets a little weak on the bridge, as well as lacking musically.
Apparently, she had to sing this naked in the studio to get the vocals just right. The lyrics are great because on the surface they appear to be a simple love song. However, if you notice the tense changes:
I have never met you
I had never met you
I've never loved someone the way I loved you.
It's about a crush, an infatuation, a first love that is a projection of the ideal that she wanted. She had never met the person and she was already in love and ready to change. She changes everything for it, and perhaps loses part of herself, and goes away to a fairyland ("A place that exists in the pages of scripts"). It is a beautiful and heartfelt song of the naivety many of us experience. But in the end, as implies by the past tense, it ended.
6. The Absence of God
Melody: 3
Arrangement: 1
Structure: 1
Emotional: 1
Overall: 1
Very good acoustic intro and playing throughout the song. Interesting lyrics on philosophies of different people. I enjoy the subtle backing vocals in the first verse.
Singing goes back and forth from good and meh.
Sometimes it feels like a song someone just put together and started playing off the top of their head. I suppose the narrator isn't the happiest with herself, drugs, lies, etc. She's looking for a new way to look at life, going through what her friends have told her. In the end it's revealed why shes looking into different perspectives.
7. Accidntal Deth
Melody: 2
Arrangement: 1
Structure: 0
Emotional: 1
Overall: 0
Good message. Some people think a lot about changing the way they think when they are stressed out, when they just need to find an outlet.
Don't really like the delivery of the lyrics for the most part. Especially the cougars nest part. It just ruins it! Repetitive delivery.Musically repetitive, although they add some variety, the electronic sounds are too much for me.
8. More Adventurous
Melody: 3
Arrangement: 2
Structure: 1
Emotional: 2
Overall: 2
I like the acoustic guitar intro, especially with the xylophone and clean guitar on top. Enjoy the harmonica. Interesting views on love. Lewis's vocals are lovely.
Delivery of lyrics goes back and forth from good to bad, along with it being repetitive.
9. Love and War (11/11/46) 0.
Melody: 1
Arrangement: 2
Structure: 1
Emotional: 0
Overall: 0
Drumming is decent. Diverse singing. Clapping part is good, however.
Don't really like the style of the song and music. A surprise, but not a good one like #5
10. A Man/Me/Then Jim
Melody: 3
Arrangement: 3
Structure: 3
Emotional: 2
Overall: 3
Love the organ and ethnic sound of the drumming with the horns. The lighthearted yet somber music and singing goes well together. I enjoy the way the song changes perspectives. I adore the slide guitar and then bass melody that is added. The song retains it's relaxing tone throughout the remainder of the song.
11. It Just Is
Melody: 2
Arrangement: 2
Structure: 2
Emotional: 2
Overall: 2
Sad song about Elliott Smith. I like the delivery of "And this loss isn't good enough". The strings add a nice touch, and the song is kept short and sweet.
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