Built to Spill - Keep It Like a Secret

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Free Music Notes for Keep It Like a Secret

Free Music Review: This is only my opinion.
Hit: 5 Stars

BTS's 1997 release, Perfect From Now On, is a slightly better record from start to finish, with it's eight musical epics blending seemlessly together to form one incredible symphonic masterpiece (think Darkside of the Moon, only with lyrics to match).

With Keep it like a Secret, BTS hits you much harder with each seperate song, so much so that it actually makes the album feel less cohesive than PFNO. That being said, the isolated experience of each of the first nine songs is literally breathtaking. I could write pages about the intense feeling and profound meaning I derive from the recordings on this album, but there is obviously not enough room.

Keep it Like a Secret has certain songs that are so intense, I feel like I'm going to pass out every time I listen. No joke.
Here is a little of what I'm getting at. I hope these examples make sense to you:

"Time Trap" - The slow indroduction and development of a song's core sounds is always interesting to me (there is an entire genre of "jam bands" dedicated to the concept, such as Phish). This song reminds me of how the pain of life's monotonous routines can really cause us harm. It seems necessary to go through routines, yet at the same time, the routines seem to be what drain the life out of us.

"Temporarily Blind" - In the process of creating the most brilliant layers of sound structure I've ever heard, this song reminds me of the desperation of over-exposing your feelings and emotions to someone you love, in particular, to someone who will never love you in return. This song feels like one of Shakespeare's tragedies.

"Carry the Zero" - The best rock song ever recorded, and I have heard much more than my share. I like to use this song as a test to determine whether a person is REALLY alive, or just going through the motions. I've NEVER played this song for someone whom I was certain was a good person, and not have them love it. Besides displaying the most stunning guitar work I have ever heard (think tighter, more structured Jimmy Hendrix, yes Jimmy), this song reminds me that the persuit of perfection is NOT NECESSARY. People these days seem forget this simple fact. After listening to this song for about the 100th time, a thought occurred to me, "Maybe God is imperfect, and that is the very reason why none of us are perfect." This is a rather peculiar thought, considering that I feel this song itself is as close to perfection as anything produced in our reality can be.

The only, and I mean ONLY problem with this album is the last track, "Broken Chairs". I've listened many times to every song on the eight BTS albums that I own, and this song is BY FAR the worst they have to offer. It just plain sounds bad. The only reason PFNO is the best rock album of all time, and not this album, is because of this last song.

Enough of my ramblings, just buy it, and maybe a few extras for the people you really care about.

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