Nostalgia is a funny thing. For me it seems to come around more as the weather warms up in the Northeast. While for the past six or seven years I haven't been there to experience it, I remember the feeling quite well. Spring is a liberation after the hell that is four or five months of winter. And then summer in New England is an extension of that liberation; to me, there's no better feeling than walking, hiking, or just being outside on a beautiful New England summer day.
So with that being said, I'm going to go with an album that carries a lot of nostalgic weight for me. I remember specifically listening to this album a lot in the warmer months, and it was one of those albums I remember getting into around the same time I was getting my driver's license and tearing up the mean streets of Newton, MA.
Breakfast with Girls by Self is, in my eyes, a near masterpiece, even though it's really not something I'd typically be that into. Self is actually just multi-instrumentalist Matt Mahaffey, from Murfreesboro, TN. Do you remember that Expedia.com jingle (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHl4X6KiJLQ)? Him and his brother wrote that. But I digress. Mahaffey plays all the instruments on most of the songs on the record, and he also produced it (with the help of some others, including, weirdly enough, Ken Andrews of Failure, a band in which Greg Edwards of AUTOLUX is a member. Autolux have a new album out today, folks. That's the point of this aside).
You'll find a wide range of genres and influences on the record. There's electronica, rock, hip hop, funk, sampling, among other things. Mahaffey has cited influences such as Prince and Pixies and you can hear both of that and a lot more. He's also toured with and helped on some Beck records and, especially on some of the weirder songs on Breakfast with Girls, I hear a definite Beck influence.
I find the first half of the album to be stronger than the second half, but there are still great tracks towards the end, so give it a full shot. I know some of you won't like this, but it's always a fun thing for me to revisit and am curious what y'all think.
My personal favorite songs:
The End of It All
Suzie Q Sailaway
Paint By Numbers
What Are You Thinking?
It All Comes Out in the Wash
You said this album gave you a lot of nostalgia, and in a way, it gave me a lot of nostalgia too. I was reminded of a lot of quirky 90s and early 2000s bands that my dad seemed to like (Fountains of Wayne, Ben Folds Five, Jellyfish, and as you mentioned, Beck). The experimentation with different styles was something all these bands seemed to have in common. The genres that seemed to influence these songs is very indicative of the decade it was made in.
ReplyDeleteThe album's single, Meg Ryan, was one of my least favorite songs on the album, mostly due to the forced feeling, as if he was contractually obligated to write a single for the album that was formulaic and lacking in complexity. It almost felt like a parody of similar dime a dozen one hit wonders of the time. Other than that, most of the songs were enjoyable in one way or another, as they all seemed to being something new to the table. My favorites were Uno Song, What Are You Thinking?, and Sucker.
I liked the album overall, and I think I would check out more stuff by Self. This doesn't seem to be their most popular album, so I would like to see what else they are capable of.
I find it funny that you say this album is not something you'd normally be into. To me this is pretty quintessential Sam, especially since there is a Beck vibe.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I'm going to cut to the chase, I did not like this album very much. I actually think this is a good counterpoint to the album I suggested last week. That record was criticized, and rightly so, for being too similar and not having distinctive tracks. This one, in my opinion, swings too far in the other direction. There are so many unfocused and sloppy ideas going on in these tracks. Some of it is interesting, but not in a way that pleasing. It feels like the musical ramblings of someone with no attention span. Non-matching ideas are just crammed together in the hopes of some quirky artistic expression that falls flat.
I like good vocalists. I like bad vocalists. What I don't like are boring vocalists. I found Matt's voice to be extremely bland. I really couldn't focus on his lyrics, maybe they were quality, I'll have to try and delve deeper into that later. But that's the problem, really. Most of the time when listening to music, good or bad, I'm invested in what the vocalist is saying. Here, I really did not care. It all just crammed together to me with the other busy ideas.
Having a lot of ideas and influences is a great thing. As long as you have a clear vision and have the studio abilities to make it work. I can really appreciate what Matt is trying to do. It's bold to try and make so many things come together on one record, but at this early point in his career I don't think he had the judgment to really make it all meld together in one cohesive package.
As a big fan of Vampire Weekend I can say that this may be one of the preppiest albums I've ever heard. I really enjoyed how lighthearted this album was. It was something that was easy to get multiple listens of both because of how bright the sound was overall as well and how varied most of the tracks were.
ReplyDeleteI also thought the album was surprisingly cohesive too. While tracks played around with different instrumentals and styles like you mentioned, it all stayed within this poppy-love-struck-low-pressure vibe.
For me this album reminded me a lot of early 2000s pop-punk bands like Wheatus or Fountains of Wayne, which might be a strange comparison to make. There's just a certain cheesiness to this that makes me think of the bands you listen in middle school or high school. I think the worst aspect of this is represented by the kind of boring and generic lyrics. However, it does make for an album that really strikes that nostalgia chord for me.
Despite getting a little tacky and maybe twee at times, I liked this album. I mean, it feels like an album that's hard not to love. It's very light and plays around enough that there's never very long stretches of mediocre.
I was really excited about this pick because I had never heard of the artist before, and after listening to it a couple times, I still can't really explain all my thoughts on the album. This album is definitely a weird and quirky little album. I was getting of Montreal meets Weezer vibes throughout the album too which is a nice plus, considering I love both of those groups.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed a lot of the chord progressions on this album. They were all pretty interesting and unpredictable at certain points. The music also came off a bit cheesy at some points, but I found it charming I guess, not really something I could complain about.
The only thing I didn't really like about the album was that some of the tracks seemed like they didn't age well. They have that gimmicky synth aesthetic that a lot of bands from the time period had. That said, despite all it's quirkiness, I liked it. Favorite track was Suzie Q Sailaway.
My comment is coming late because I tried to give this album another shot but alas, I just couldn't get into it. It just felt overwhelmingly try hard and lacked cohesiveness. It got too dramatic for me at times and I felt like the songs would've been so much better without all the extra frills. I agree with Tyler that the vocals are bland. It's that style that's basically just talking and straining to sound like singing (that sounds kinda harsh but its a style I've never enjoyed).
ReplyDeleteI can't say that I enjoyed any of the tracks to be honest. Sucker was tolerable and What Are You Thinking? was decent. I guess just all these tracks on the same album were a bit too much for me. I can see why you like this album though Sam, since you are into the instrumental aspect a lot more than lyrics/vocals but it was just way too much for me at times and that made it difficult to find aspects I actually enjoyed.
So I was already sort of familiar with this album before because Hayley Williams once cited this as the first CD she ever purchased or something, but it's been a few years since I'd listened. Anyway, it might have helped that there was some nostalgia and an endorsement from my favorite person on the planet (Hayley, not Sam), but I really love this album. It's just so fun to listen to. Sure, it's too long and it's sorta corny but every time I listen to it I feel like I'm in a Disney Channel Original Movie in the best way possible. Since Sam pulled this one out in the spring this is my go-to for a sunny day when I've got stuff to do around the city by myself. It's just really silly and happy and pulls me out of reality and into some cliche teenage movie montage or something. Thanks for reminding me of this one, Sam.
ReplyDeleteFavorite songs are The End Of It All, Suzie Q Sailaway, Sucker, and Callgirls