[.ca] Breathe

What?:
Lets start this off by saying, this is a good CD. I have not listened to it intensely yet, but it sounds good on my first listens. Now, I've had enough of you idiots comparing bands. The Leaves are The Leaves, not Coldplay, not Radiohead, not Clay Aiken. The Leaves seem to have an ambiant sound with a slow beat, similar to that of Sigur Ros (I am not saying they ARE Sigur Ros, I am just using Sigur as a reference). The reason I did not give it the full five stars is because of the falsetto; I'm not the biggest fan of it. Otherwise, the CD is good, not excellent- good.

The Gentler Side of Music:
It seems that a few reviewers didn't like this album because it was not Coldplay or Sigur Ros or whatever. And they're right, it's not. But that doesn't make it bad. I guess this album is a bit like a cross between Coldplay and Doves, it's simplistic, for sure, and the lyrics don't fill you with a desire to lock yourself in a room and ponder life's mysteries for hours. It's basically a fun album. It's an album not meant for analyzing and picking apart, but for driving down the road and enjoying it for what it offers. A superb album, and I'm really looking forward for their new album, supposedly sometime soon.

Mansun. Echo & The Bunnymen, Doves...:
Aside from Sunday Lover which does have a Coldplay-like stylistic - this album shadows a lot of older school artists vocally; Paul Draper (Mansun.), Roland Orzabal (later Tears For Fears material), & Ian McCulloch (Echo). Music-wise Leaves resembles Doves and Echo & The Bunnymen's Evergreen. I don't want to use too many more comparisons, because Breathe shows original elements too - they just all sound familiar. Also, two of the best tracks of 2003 were "Crazy" and "Catch", hands down - that is worth the ticket alone.

Beyond the others...:
Well, first off, I'm not here to compare the Leaves to Coldplay, Sigor Ros or any other band or singer. The Leaves have compiled a great collection of songs which delve into the soul and draws out emotions some may leave hidden, unless alone in the dark. I went out looking for a number of albums today, and came across the Leaves album, "Breathe". Utilizing Amazon.com all of the time to help me compile lists of various artists, this album happened to be one of the many I had listed. I put down my bucks, made my way to my car and listened intently to each song before I even left the parking lot! I'm not one for throwing out comparisons to other artists, so I listened to "Breathe", allowing each note, lyric and melody sink in. "I Go Down" sets the pace from the start. A breath of musical chemistry building through each measure, comprised of calming chords and heart-felt lyricism. "Sunday Lover" continues from where "I Go Down" left off, creating another mood of longing through the vocals of Arnar, and being crisp and clean in it's presentation. Each song which follows emotes varying emotions, which I feel have an original touch and is calming to the soul. A great album...A great buy. Thanks Amazon.com!

A great surprise!:
Only last week, while poking around some CD stacks at the radio station I work at, did I find this debut from the Icelandic band "Leaves", with the little sticker on the front that mentioned the band Sigur Ros. Little did I know I'd end up with a band more in the realm of Coldplay than S.R., and one of the best albums I've heard in months! Sure, they sound a lot like Coldplay (and who doesn't sound like SOMEBODY these days?! - "Yellow" certainly owes a lot to Catherine Wheel, in my book!), but Leaves also reminds me of the band Mansun, whose "Attack of the Grey Lantern" is still a fave! Overall, I don't care WHO they remind me of as long as the songwriting is strong, and here, the band craft gorgeous melody after gorgeous melody, with intricate interplay between guitars and vocals, to create a perfectly dreamy summertime album (unfortunately, this album is probably "over" now as far as their record company is concerned, since it was actually released last September). But hey, whatever influences this band incorporated to make this excellent album, I have no qualms - I'll just enjoy it over and over again. (And let it make my wait for the new Cure album a little less painful!)

• I Go Down
• Sunday Lover
• Catch
• Breathe
• Silence
• Crazy
• Alone in the Sun
• Epitaph
• Deep Blue
• Suppose
• Race
• We
• Favour