Customer Reviews

Actions & Indications

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To me the reviews posted here are about people's expectations and not about the actual CD. I haven't listened to a Seaweed CD in at least a year and the last time I did it was "Four" and "Go Your Own Way." For posterity's sake, here is a complete listing of their recordings:
Despised - 1991 (Sub Pop)
Weak - 1992 (Sub Pop)
[self-titled] - 1991 (Tupelo Records)
Measure - 1992 (Sub Pop)
Four - 1993 (Sub Pop)
Go Your Own Way - 1993 (Sub Pop)
Spanaway - 1995 (Uni/Hollywood)
Actions & Indications - 1999 (Merge Records)
That's a pretty good career in the music industry. Several of those albums are real gems...but let's get on with this CD and try to not reflect back on "the good ol' days."

"Actions and Indications" is a standout piece for a band coming off a four-year layoff. Granted, I am here writing a review of the band's release two years late, but what I am hearing now, I like. It has a lot of energy and reminds me of emo-core/post-hardcore bands such as Rival Schools (wonder why, considering Alan Cage from Quicksand is behind the kit on this disc.) I was impressed with "Against The Sky," "Steadfast Shrine," and I personally loved the cover of Joy Division's "Warsaw" (of course, Joy Division was a staple of my coming of age years.) Aaron Stauffer's vocals are still tight and acerbic...just the type of wit I like. The guitar breaks and hooks definitely are strong and really gives that poppy feel that is what makes emo so strong - lyrics that connote the emotion that Clint Werner and Wade Neil are belting out.

Overall, I was impressed. For a 1999 CD I enjoyed this a lot and think it falls into the mainstream interpretation of emo that most people enjoy. I don't try to judge it against their past works...the experiences and memories are too strong for many albums to overcome those works.

So I got Four in the mail today, and I can see how others might be disappointed by Actions and Indications. This a different Seaweed, though still retaining the things that make them Seaweed. They hinted at this with Spanaway, but this is a much better effort.

The album starts off with Antilyrical, a very clear introduction to their Quicksand-esque sound. It's a good track, but not something I switch back to. Through the Window, however, is a gem. Nostalgic, warm, but with a gigantic guitar riff that still shreds. Steadfast Shrine shows the softer side of the album. It's not excellent, but they've got the right idea. It's followed by Red Tape Parade, another big rocker. Actually, I don't like it but my friend loves it. Against the Sky is my second favorite on the album. Extremely sincere, but with a guitar riff that bursts through with a sense of pride. Sounds amazing when played at ear-drum bursting volumes (and shows off the album's excellent production as well). Let Go and Stay Down aren't their strongest either, but their place in the album is well thought out, and helps it wind down, making it very cohesive.

I've had this album for over a year now and it's one of the elite few that find its way in every month or two. The first time I listened to it, I listened twice through, which I never do. Truthfully, I'd recommend buying this album first out of them all, and then moving backwards, so you don't get all grumpy like the rest of the reviewers here

As a big fan of previous Seaweed albums (especially 'Weak') I was a bit disappointed at my first listening of 'Actions...' However, after multiple listens I've found that this album has some gems. Much like Spanaway there's an emphasis on melody and punch, over speed. Also like Spanaway, there are some throw away tracks but there are also some rockers which compare favorably to previous Seaweed material. Overall, not the brilliant piece of work 'Weak' was, but still a great effort.

Seaweed's earlier albums reflect much more accurately the energy of their live shows. This album could be used as elevator music at Nordstrom's. Seaweed seems to have lost its punk heritage.

A bit poppier than the earlier albums, but reatains all of the old energy and grind of the previous albums. The heightened maturity of this band is evident in in the songwriting present here, but without the mandolins and clean channel guitar often present when most bands of this genere depart from their primary style. Seaweed reaches out and grasp is not exceeded.

After listening to this album, its hard to believe that Seaweed have wallowed in obscurity for as long as they have. Their album captures the energy and intesity that today's rock is all about. Forget the labels and stereotypes and all your expectations. Just play this CD while driving in your car. You might not get it after the first listen but after several plays the album's power and complexities will shine through. Seaweed have probably made their most mature and solid album to date.

As an avid Seaweed fan who owns all of their Cd's, and has seen them many, many times live, this album is not at all representative of the past brillance of this band. If you thought that their last effort was weak (no pun intended), this album will not rekindle the fire of Despised, Weak, Four, or any of their ep's (Measure was a gem). This band may be suffering from a major label hangover.

Although Seaweed used to spawn three-minute anthems like a busy chicken in heat, Actions and Indications' stand-out tracks seem unnatural, as if they were born by cesarean. New drummer Alan Cage (Quicksand) pummels the daylights out of "Red Tape Parade," but its half-hearted, spoken verses and uninspired chorus celebrate nothing but blandness. Only "Warsaw" hints at the balls-out riff-rock of the band's glory days - a point puzzlingly reached by a Joy Division cover from Ian Curtis' insipid neo-Nazi period. "In the Middle" and "Let Go" close the album with a glimpse of hope, the former building its foundation on a mere three phrases. In this line of work, less is more.     When it's done right, Seaweed's brand of artsy punk is gleefully adolescent and transparent with enough of a dark side to keep the kids thinking. Betraying its audience with an equally transparent self-righteousness, Seaweed offers little more than a view into its newly dug grave.