Perhaps realizing that their time on a major label was likely limited, Built to Spill made a gutsy choice for Keep It Like a Secret, their second album for Warner Brothers. They embraced the sounds of a big studio and focused their sound without sacrificing their fractured indie rock aesthetic. In a sense, this is Built to Spill's pop album: every song is direct and clean, without the long, cerebral jamming that characterized their earlier albums. That's not to say that the album is compromised -- the songwriting may be streamlined, but Doug Martsch now packs all of his twists, turns, and detours into dense, three-minute blasts. This approach, combined with the shiny sonic textures, makes Keep It Like a Secret the most immediate and, yes, accessible Built to Spill record, but they steadfastly open their music up and breathe the way, say, Pavement did on Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain or Brighten the Corners. Built to Spill still demand that listener meet them on their own terms -- these just happen to be the easiest terms to understand in their catalog.
Did you ever have one of those songs hit you, and just kind of connect everything you had been feeling about a certain situation but never could put your finger on it? The contempt I now feel for Classic Rock radio's generic play lists and rotation killing ways have made me listen to CD's or talk radio while in the car. The fact that so many artists can be so narrowly represented by the mediu...
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I FINALLY got to see Doug Martsch and Built To Spill this past fall, and all of my feelings about the band were totally confirmed. Brilliant!The lyric dropping in this song is so great...its sort of a love song to all of the great songs that came before....and I love it!
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Did you ever have one of those songs hit you, and just kind of connect everything you had been feeling about a certain situation but never could put your finger on it? The contempt I now feel for Classic Rock radio's generic play lists and rotation killing ways have made me listen to CD's or talk radio while in the car. The fact that so many artists can be so narrowly represented by the mediu...
More >
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 "Keep It Like a Secret")
