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I just discovered these guys...


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Just got Band of Horses Cease to Begin...

 

Holy Shit these guys are good...reminds me just a bit of MMJ.

 

I love it when I find something that excites me...

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Full disclosure, I don't think this band is anything special - they're too derivative, and they still sound The Shins bending MMJ over the edge of a be dto me - but I do like them a bit. I think the sophomore disc is leagues ahead of the first one. The songcraft is just so much more confident and airtight. The first side is just packed with songs that, for what they are, couldn't possibly be any better. The General Specific is actually captital-G great in my book.

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Really? Wow...

 

My disclosures: as several people here know, I am a walking contradiction in that I am (a) completely infatuated with Band Of Horses and (b - to put it mildly) rather indifferent about MMJ. While I agree that The General Specific is capital G-Good (along with Is There A Ghost, No One's Gonna Love You, Islands On The Coast and Window Blues), there is simply NO track on EATT that isn't amazing.

 

That is in my very humble opinion, of course...

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Crow:

 

I'll add my voice to the group who advocates you going out and finding the first record Everything all the Time. I too feel it's an overall stronger effort, with not a dud in the bunch.

 

Good group to see in a live setting too. Humble, down to earth dudes.

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the melodies and songwriting on EATT are far far stronger, and that's likely due to the fact that Matt Brooke was also a co-writer on a lot of that album and wrote a few songs. the new album only features Ben as the returning member from the first album.

 

there's not a single song on the new album that touches the majestic of The Funeral or Great Salt Lake.

also, Is There A Ghost is an OK song, but honestly, look at the lyrics sometime... it's the same 3 lines over, and over, and over, and over and over.

 

the General Specific is indeed a great song, as is Islands On The Coast. the one song that grew on me a lot is "No One's Gonna Love You', great song.

 

most of the people i know who prefer the 2nd album were only very very briefly familiar with Everything All The Time.

 

as much as i like BoH, they can't even compare to MMJ on album, but especially live. It's not even fucking close. MMJ are one of the best rock bands around these days, while BoH are just average to good and rarely stray from the album versions at all. that said, the Shins make better albums than BoH (minus this new one), but are usually quite dull live.

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I love BoH, but one of the main issues I have with the new record is the lyrics. They are really, really poor at times. Ode To LRC for example, as good a song it is, the lyrics are just crap. Which is why I can't connect with the new album as much as EATT - which is a stone cold classic.

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I love BoH, but one of the main issues I have with the new record is the lyrics. They are really, really poor at times. Ode To LRC for example, as good a song it is, the lyrics are just crap. Which is why I can't connect with the new album as much as EATT - which is a stone cold classic.

agreed... take out the innane lyrics to LRC and it's a killer tune.

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:yes Which is odd to me - It could be that I'm underestimating Mat Brooke's contribution, but I thought Ben wrote most of the lyrics on EATT.

right, which just means that he either ran out of ideas, got lucky, or got lazy ;)

 

Matt wrote I Go To The Barn and St. Augustine

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  • 2 months later...

I've seen them thrice:

 

1) Once on their first tour in Charleston opening for Iron and Wine before anything was settled. They were decent at this point but I could tell they would become something more.

2) Once in Charleston just after Cease to Begin came out

3) Once in Los Angeles when they opened for Dinosaur Jr. I was surprised how many people left after they played before Dinosaur came on.

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Saw them awhile ago (I want to say late 06??) in DC, never had heard of them before the friend who brought me out gave me EATT.

 

Their set was kinda goofy and had a lot technical problems, but they came across as supercharming and the lead singer was very solid vocally. I think they didn't have their normal second guitar for that show though, I think the guy playing was a local stand-in for some reason.

 

Also I think the Shins comparison is a good one, at least on the level of "I don't really care what this dude is saying, these spacey guitars are hella cool."

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The remind me of the perfect blend of MMJ and Built to Spill, and it sounds beautiful. I saw them at The Metro a few weeks ago and, man that guy has some pipes! Great show.

 

Very true - fans of BOH and those not already familiar should do themselves a favor and pick up Built to Spill's Perfect From Now On - a gorgeous piece of sumptuous, epic guitar heavy indie rock.

 

Ten years on and it still raises goosebumps.

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The Great Salt Lake is fantastic. I must say, that driving home from work and seeing the sunset and the real great salt lake is pretty damn cool with this song pumping. EATT is far superior to Cease to Begin. I got them both together, and if no one told me, I would have figured Cease to Begin was the older album. Certainly a step back -- not a big one, but not in the same league as the first one.

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