Sunday, October 22, 2006

Starflyer 59 vs. Jeremy Enigk

[migrated from myspace blog]

Okay, the title is really misleading. Jason Martin won't be squaring off with Jeremy Enigk, but yesterday both of their new CDs arrived in my mailbox together. Both of these artists are responsible, in my opinion (along with Dave Bazan, Poor Old Lu and others - thanks Seattle), for pushing musical boundaries and allowing me and others to enjoy some originality in music. (I know, nothing is truly original in music.)

For Enigk, it's his first solo release in 10 years, having reunited Sunny Day Real Estate for a time and formed The Fire Theft. World Waits less avant-garde than Return of the Frog Queen and a little closer to The Fire Theft, yet it still employs some acoustic guitar and more guest musicians than I would think to be possible. For me the highlight of Enigk's music has been his voice. His vocals manage to be heartbreakingly painful and unabashedly joyful at the same time.

With My Island, Jason Martin takes Starflyer 59 on its continuing evolution that logically follows Talking Voice vs. Singing Voice. As an album, it's creative and playful, yet a little dark and very gritty. If Jeremy Enigk is about the voice, then Starflyer is about the guitar. It's ALWAYS been about the guitar. Perhaps not a guitar virtuoso, Jason started out on the first albums with about 20 layers of guitar on each song, but has come to be a catchy songwriter with simple but memorable guitar solos, and sometimes more than simple (I Am the Portuguese Blues). TV vs. SV saw Jason's guitar with a whole new set of pedals from Smart People Factory. It sounds like they're still there, but this time around with a little more distortion. Overall the songs are faster and more driving than the laid back sound on TV vs. SV. The song "Good Sons" might fit on My Island, giving a glimpse of where the current sound came from. My Island's bass lines also have a lot of movement compared to any previous SF release. It can't be easy to put out songs of this quality, but Jason has managed to continue the streak.

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