[.ca] You Think Its Like This But Re

plucking petals one by one:
i love this album so much. i just bought it the other day, used for fear that it would not live up to my expectations and i would regret paying full price, but i would gladly pay full price for this album. its pure genius. and so nice to see a girl getting rock so right. of course you have jenny lewis of rilo kiley as well who, in my opinion, can do no wrong. i think it is about time we see some more of this. sure i love conor oberst and tim kasher and think they are geniuses, but seeing women take over is a big relief! way to go girls! its a great album. words cannot describe, the last song on the album, is one to be treasured.

This is what happens when Mazzy Star catches her breath:
Mirah is another in the growing line of stripped-down, lo-fi, simple, but somehow heartwrenching acts. That being the case, it's hard to describe this music without the aid of a million referents (Moldy Peaches, Cat Power, Azure Ray, April March, Edie Brickell, etc.). While I want to dislike this sparce music which consists mostly of Mirah Yom Tov Zeitlyn's delicate, sophomoric vocals and light tremomlo guitar, repetitive lines like "if we sleep together, will it make it any better" from "La Familia" make my inner 17 year old indie grrl do cartwheels. Run-on sentences aside, this album is the kind of stuff Jack White probably listens to on rainy days. "Sweepstakes Prize" builds from a do-wop wink into a fuzzy, rocking song. "Person, Person" recalls some on Donovan's sillier moments. The range of ground Mirah covers is represented best on "This Dance," which starts off full of lament, and threatens continually to build through three musically varied verses. The music is undeniably light, but it is also diverse enough to keep things interesting. It's a guilty pleasure that will probably become a permanent part of my personal rotation.

yummy, spoonfuls please!:
this is a GREAT album! Just when you think there could be a bad track on an album, something like this comes out. One can listen to it front to back. it has a guise of being sugary goodness, but the raw energy makes it more crunchy. this is what you wish your girlfriend sounded like. sweet and sultry.

You think it sounds like this, but really it's like this:
I heard one song on the radio, and liked the stark acoustical style and pleasant voice enough to check it out. The real reason I bought the CD, though, was because of the raving 5 star reivews. In fact, after searching online, I found nothing but great reviews. Since there's already plenty to clue you into the virtues, I'll just comment on what disappointed me. The lyrics convey emotion and visual imagery rather well, but they feel poorly constructed, lacking the rhythm and rhyming needed to really stick in my head. Some melodies meander around without purpose, while others are overly repetitve without any hint of conventional song structure. In short, they're boring. I realize that much of what I dislike is what others will love most. I'm listening to it as I write, and the last minute of Water and Sleep has a drum buildup that sounds like it should break into something melodic, but it just keeps pounding away with baredly audible vocals for the entire minute. I will admit, though, that it's getting a little better with repeated listening. So what can I say? "You Think ... Like This" has got it's high points, it's got it's beauty, it gets better with time, but this lo-fi production is definitely not for everyone.

Lo-Fi Country Folk Rock:
I'll make this review short and sweet. If Sheryl Crow were to make an album with Dolly Parton in 1972 with the help of The Microphones, this is what the result would sound like. In fact, if I had to move to a very small town in Oklahoma for the rest of my life, I think this album might make it a bit more enjoyable. It reminds me very much of small town life. At least what I imgaine it to be like. Parts of this album pick up into more of a rock induced album, but for the most part it's in the folk genre. At some point in the album you expect to hear someone blowing into a jug. I think I would actually dig that pretty much if they did. Several of the stand out tracks are: "Person Person," "Sweepstakes Prize," "This Dance," and "Murphy Bed." Give this a chance. I think you'll be surprised at the intimacy it contains. Fits well with all your "drivin' down a dirt road" records.

• Million Miles
• Sweepstakes Prize
• Of Pressure
• This Dance
• Familia
• Gone Sugaring
• Person Person
• Engine Heart
• Archipelago
• 100 Knives
• Murphy Bed
• Pollen
• Small Town
• Water and Sleep
• Telephone Wires
• Words Cannot Describe