Not Long Enough

What is such a travesty in this all is the Long Winters are long overdue for their marvelous pop/indie rock sound.  Their previous effort, When I Pretend to Fall (2003) was a cheeky lyrical bout that had fantastically catchy riffs.  Two things are clear with their latest effort: The band continues to purify their sound – albeit at a snail’s pace and furthermore Putting the Days to Bed is a true piece of poetic harmony and whit only solidifying the bands grandeur oversight on the pop scene.

Days succeeds on a continued principle of honesty and emotional reality that lead John Roderick pens to perfection but sometimes stumbles on persuasion.  ‘Pushover’ dabbles in acoustic flare as a strong opening and ‘The Sky is Open’ prevails with the aid of a tingly chorus and amplifyed ending. Where Prevail was consistent, Days is able to try something unexpected at each turn proving their large hodgepodge of ability. ‘Departure’ echoes across the entire album as an epicenter of blistering guitars and an outburst of energetic choruses that stands almost as a new level for which the band should always strive to outdo.  It’s that superior.  ‘Teaspoon’ flawlessly opens into a flighty jam in the end accompanied by a belting brass section that shows Roderick’s poetic imperfections which somehow always compliments the style in which his band plays; as if a moving and sweeping effort that at any time can travel from simplicity to the deepest of emotions without cause or warning.

Of course, one could heed some admonition with songs like ‘Rich Wife’ which is about as sarcastically-pop as one can get and also stands as the catchiest effort on the album but simply does not work in conjunction with the surrounding efforts and the direction the band has already begun to morph toward. Sure it offers one of the greatest liners “Is your high horse getting a little hard to ride?” but it simply bastardizes the bands true gifts in construction. So the rub begins to stand out.  The band has continuously altered their sound to move ever so close to an alt-pop median but sacrifices some of their own talents along the journey. 

What stands as fact is that The Long Winters continue to perfect the post grunge sound like so many influenced form the Northwest like Death Cab for Cutie and Harvey Danger with maturing results.  They are not copying it but building from each and creating a new atmospheric rock that is more self intervention than self motivation.  Putting the Days to Bed is a strong addition to the bands growing library of increasingly higher stakes and bars for which they attempt to reach – too careful at times and therefore drawing out an otherwise majestic experience.  None-the-less, the power in their pop and the cynicism in their chorus elevate Days above all previous efforts and stands as a new tier from which they will surely build upon.