SoundSnobbing








  • Week #6 Sunny Day Real Estate - Diary (Remastered) Selected by Alex Overall Score: 8.4 ______________________________________________________________________________ Marcus’s Review: Creativity/Artistry: 10Talent/Instrument Skill: 9Structure/ Composition: 10Replayability: 10Growth/ Maturity: 8 Average: 9.4 Comment: A contrast to the reviews below between Mike & myself. This is what I consider a 9.4 worthy album. This shouldn’t come to a surprise to anyone that saw me sporting a certain sunburst bumper sticker through the end of high school and my entire college career. This album started it all for me. This was my gateway to Mineral, Get Up Kids, Promise Ring, Texas is the Reason, etc. I first saw their video when I was on the phone with my buddy Chris Logan. We watched William Goldsmith wailing on the drums in “Seven” and had to hear more. The first Means Well/ semi-Holdfast song we wrote ripped off this band (who remembers “Doorknob”?). This is a band that actually drives a song with the bass at times. You always know it is there rolling around inside the melody. The drummer and bassist were so good Dave Grohl came in and stole them for his at the time fledgling project knows as the Foo-Fighters. This effectively broke up the band for a long time. Luckily, reunions happen and I had a chance to see this band not once, but twice, before they became defunct once again in 2001 when their label went under. You know those shows where it feels like they only play 3 songs but they actually cranked out 15? Both shows were over way too soon. They never came close on their recent 2nd reunion tour and I really wish I had road tripped for it. So much of early “Emo”, you know, before it turned into this http://bit.ly/HX2ya, was influenced by this album. The soft verses built with tension into the sweet release of the powerful, catchy chorus. Heartfelt, masterly-written, profound vocals about love-lost and life seemed written specifically for the listener. I think I actually lived every word in “Song About an Angel” and “Sometimes” in 1998. The background vocals are always wrenching and a huge part of each song, not just added filler. As someone who is REALLY picky about vocals, Jeremy’s voice is not really something that would normally do it for me. That is the reason for the single point loss in the Instrument category. Don’t get me wrong, he is amazing in every way but if I had to find something to criticize, I would go there. The 8 awarded in growth and maturity is meant to reflect how much this band grew from this album to LP2, How it Feels to Be Something On, and The Rising Tide. Who could have known how much they would extend their library and sound when we first heard this CD? There are some amazing songs on the subsequent albums that weren’t realized or even in the same direction as some of these songs and that needed to be reflected somewhere in the score. This is the recently remastered release which is very tastefully done. They didn’t disrupt the songs with drastic changes like the new Pearl Jam “Ten” re-master that came out earlier this year. The vocals sound fuller, the guitars more defined. This is Artistry, Talent, Song-Structure at its finest and for me, will always be a defining point in what I look for in music. Best Songs: “Seven”, “In Circles”, “Song About an Angel”, “Round”, “47”, “The Blankets Were the Stairs”, “Pheurton Skeurto”, “Shadows”, “48”, Grendel” and “Sometimes” ______________________________________________________________________________ Alex’s Review: Creativity/Artistry: 8Talent/Instrument Skill: 8Structure/ Composition: 8Replayability: 6Growth/ Maturity: 7 Average: 7.4 Comment: I think several songs on this album are killer but the album as a whole doesn’t keep my attention.  I think I would have loved this about 10 years ago but I’m kind of done with the Grunge/Emo thing.  With that being said, I do enjoy the album and I’m happy that I now have it in my collection. Best Songs: “Seven”, “In Circles” ________________________________________________________________________________

    Week #6

    Sunny Day Real Estate - Diary (Remastered)

    Selected by Alex

    Overall Score: 8.4

    ______________________________________________________________________________

    Marcus’s Review:

    Creativity/Artistry: 10
    Talent/Instrument Skill: 9
    Structure/ Composition: 10
    Replayability: 10
    Growth/ Maturity: 8

    Average: 9.4

    Comment: A contrast to the reviews below between Mike & myself. This is what I consider a 9.4 worthy album. This shouldn’t come to a surprise to anyone that saw me sporting a certain sunburst bumper sticker through the end of high school and my entire college career. This album started it all for me. This was my gateway to Mineral, Get Up Kids, Promise Ring, Texas is the Reason, etc. I first saw their video when I was on the phone with my buddy Chris Logan. We watched William Goldsmith wailing on the drums in “Seven” and had to hear more. The first Means Well/ semi-Holdfast song we wrote ripped off this band (who remembers “Doorknob”?). This is a band that actually drives a song with the bass at times. You always know it is there rolling around inside the melody. The drummer and bassist were so good Dave Grohl came in and stole them for his at the time fledgling project knows as the Foo-Fighters. This effectively broke up the band for a long time. Luckily, reunions happen and I had a chance to see this band not once, but twice, before they became defunct once again in 2001 when their label went under. You know those shows where it feels like they only play 3 songs but they actually cranked out 15? Both shows were over way too soon. They never came close on their recent 2nd reunion tour and I really wish I had road tripped for it.

    So much of early “Emo”, you know, before it turned into this http://bit.ly/HX2ya, was influenced by this album. The soft verses built with tension into the sweet release of the powerful, catchy chorus. Heartfelt, masterly-written, profound vocals about love-lost and life seemed written specifically for the listener. I think I actually lived every word in “Song About an Angel” and “Sometimes” in 1998. The background vocals are always wrenching and a huge part of each song, not just added filler. As someone who is REALLY picky about vocals, Jeremy’s voice is not really something that would normally do it for me. That is the reason for the single point loss in the Instrument category. Don’t get me wrong, he is amazing in every way but if I had to find something to criticize, I would go there. The 8 awarded in growth and maturity is meant to reflect how much this band grew from this album to LP2, How it Feels to Be Something On, and The Rising Tide. Who could have known how much they would extend their library and sound when we first heard this CD? There are some amazing songs on the subsequent albums that weren’t realized or even in the same direction as some of these songs and that needed to be reflected somewhere in the score.

    This is the recently remastered release which is very tastefully done. They didn’t disrupt the songs with drastic changes like the new Pearl Jam “Ten” re-master that came out earlier this year. The vocals sound fuller, the guitars more defined. This is Artistry, Talent, Song-Structure at its finest and for me, will always be a defining point in what I look for in music.

    Best Songs: “Seven”, “In Circles”, “Song About an Angel”, “Round”, “47”, “The Blankets Were the Stairs”, “Pheurton Skeurto”, “Shadows”, “48”, Grendel” and “Sometimes”

    ______________________________________________________________________________

    Alex’s Review:

    Creativity/Artistry: 8
    Talent/Instrument Skill: 8
    Structure/ Composition: 8
    Replayability: 6
    Growth/ Maturity: 7

    Average: 7.4

    Comment: I think several songs on this album are killer but the album as a whole doesn’t keep my attention.  I think I would have loved this about 10 years ago but I’m kind of done with the Grunge/Emo thing.  With that being said, I do enjoy the album and I’m happy that I now have it in my collection.

    Best Songs: “Seven”, “In Circles”

    ________________________________________________________________________________

    Posted 2 years ago.