Customer Reviews

Burst & Bloom

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I remember being amazed by this record when I preordered it from saddle creek a few years ago, and my opinion of it hasn't changed at all since then. These five songs are so beautiful, and probably the most intense stuff cursive has written. I think all of their albums are way ahead of the pack, but this one is still my favorite. You will LOVE it.

Ok, so here's the deal with Cursive. They are uncomparable to anything else. Nothing comes close to the melodic imperfection and anguish in Tim's voice. The only thing I could compare it to its Bright Eyes, except roughly a million times better. Now here's the question; to the person who said they were nothing out of the ordinary, did you buy the correct CD? There literally is nothing out there that sounds like cursive, never mind anything mainstream or pop. They do not blend in, they are original and really wierd. I didn't even like them at first, they sounded almost off beat and off key. But then they grew on me, more and more, as I listened on. This is my favorite CD by them, and they are pretty much my favorite band, right along with Boy Sets Fire. It's absolutely amazing, how deep this goes down the rabbit hole. I had actually downloaded most of their songs, and unwittingly picked these out as my personal favorite, as they are some of the more upbeat and intense. I later found out they were all on one CD, which I naturally bought. This is one of those gems that you will treasure for long to come, so do yourself a favor and get aquainted with something obscure.

I'm going to be honest, I only started to get into Cursive all of, well, two days ago, so don't expect me to be very knowledgable about the evolution of Cursive's sound. Since then I've grabbed all the music I could get my hands on, and I must say, this EP truely stands out. I'll keep the review short and sweet considering I don't want to offend anyone with my horrendous review capabilities.

This album offers pretty tunes, awesome instrumental vocal and instrumental riffs, and interesting lyrics. Each track is as complex as it is catchy. I don't want to say anything cliche but I gotta agree with the other reviewers who say that the occasionaly off-key vocals or instruments give the album a far more realistic and interesting appeal. While it certainly takes a bit of getting used to, Cursive's unique style is brilliantly original. I highly recommend this EP [and several listens thereof], especially just putting on "The Great Decay" and cranking the volume.

Enjoy!

Five songs that are much more individually stunning than the rest of Cursive's work. Although these songs are very good, I do enjoy Cursive's 2 most recent LP's more.
The first 3 tracks would have to be the better side to the album with 'Sink to the Beat' leading the pack as far as standout tracks are concerned. If you are already a fan of Cursive's other work buy this and keep supporting a great band. Otherwise, check out The Ugly Organ or Domestica first.

The EP "Burst and Bloom" marks a turning point for the Omaha indie band Cursive, adding a different aspect and a cello player to the already churned-up music. Cursive is loud, it's sad, it's weird and it's the best thing out of Omaha in... well, just about ever.

A tinny, distant voice and a few low-key strings kick off the rocking "Sink To The Beat," a blastingly honest look at music production ("this unique approach to start an EP/intended to shock, create a mystique..."). The heavy, fast "Great Decay" unflinchingly glares at Middle America, until "Tall Tales, Telltales" opens with a shimmering buildup of strings and drums. An infectious bassline underlies the catchy, kicky "Mothership Mothership Do You Read Me," before the EP ends with a bang in the sparking "Fairy Tales Tell Tales."

"Burst and Bloom" is intense. Really intense. Really, really, really intense. But that intensity is softened by newcomer Gretta Cohn's cello playing. You can't always hear it clearly, but it's there, and it adds an extra dimension to the bass drums and heady guitar riffs. The lyrics are pretty solid, save in the more repetitive, simplistic "Great Decay."

Tim Kasher really doesn't hold back vocally on "Burst and Bloom." No pointless angsty emo moans here. Kasher sounds so frenzied and upset at times that you can almost see him clawing at the padded walls. "Sink to the Beat" climaxes with his anguished howls of "Hit... SONG!/Let it BURST and BLOOM!", that will send chills down your spine.

In no way does "Burst and Bloom" serve as "a cheap strategy, a marketing scheme/building awareness for the next LP." This EP serves as a good bridge from one Cursive album to another... not to mention a great introduction to the band overall. Bleak, brash and brilliant.

There's no question, Cursive has one of the most unique sounds in indie rock. The melodies expode out of this 5 song EP that is competively their best work of art to date (Dec 2003). Tim Kasher (the god of indie rock) uses unbelievable dynamics to take you from his gentle hush hush falsetto and trickling guitars mixed with soothing cello, to an explosion of emotion.

If you are looking for the perfect mix between technical weirdness and catchy pop melodies it is right here, I can almost feel my mind expanding everytime I listen to these uniquely styled songs driven by Tim Kasher, who is Indie Rock's answer to Billy Corgan or Kurt Cobain.

The album opens up with "Sink To The Beat," a tale of the marketing scams of an EP in which Tim seeks honesty with his listeners. A sing-songy tune all the way till the end until the plane finally crashes and an explosion occurs that sends shivers down your spine. "The Great Decay" follows as (in my opinion) the band's greatest writing achievement out of all their work. "Tall Tales, Tell Tales" opens up with a guitar riff that grabs your attention instantly with a strageness that maintains an excellent melody. Clint (drums) graces this and every Cursive song with one of the freshest and most orininal styles existing in modern music that never fails the song with flashy drum fills, but supports it with Clint's keen ear. The vocals of this song are easily some of his catchiest, especially the chorus. "Mothership, Mothership" bobs your head with its underlying bass topped with yet another amazing guitar riff and more cello that I can never get enough of. "Fairy Tales, Tell Tales" finally leaves us of with an extremely incindeary song all the way through. Gretta is the one that shines in this piece. Although they are predominant less than not, her parts add beautiful harmony all the way through.

If you have just recently heard of Cursive and are contemplating buying your first Cursive album, then this is where you need to start. You're not buying a full LP, but all 5 song will absolutely blow you away...or back to a record dealer for more.

As with a handful of other albums released over the course of forever, that I have either stumbled upon by accident or advertisement, Cursive's Burst and Bloom Ep grows out of the subtle place I ran into it, and becomes am unconscious theme song. It is the most confidently beautiful music to ever rise out of obscurity or Omaha, nebraska for that matter, with the exception of perhaps Bright Eyes.
For 22 minutes Burst and Bloom keeps odd stride and stutters, forcing its way through the normal limitations of radio friendly music, yet still retains a complete attraction.
The simplicity of lyrics are contrasted by tight and crisp music, culminating from old school punk simplicity what might as well be progressive Rush style rock. It comes complete with all you'd expect guitars, bass drums but topped with String sections, piano, odd vocal effects and drum machine.
If anything I would say that the Cd winds up in my car Cd player as often as Once a week, if not more, and I listen to a wide variety of music, from Bjork to Tool. I own over 500 Cd's and Burst and Bloom is one of the most consistantly listened to of all of them.

Any album that has ONE Completely Brilliant song is amazing enough, the fact this album has two is amazing. Track 3 and Track 5 are those tunes. They both pun with the words: "tall tales." What makes them so engaging is the way the music dances and stutteres, with force and confidence. This aurally gives the music an edge. This almost brutal force then stops, and slips into gentleness, all in the coure of a small passage. The lyrics themselves are a joy in these two songs. The fifth track being a little bit more mundane, but still intimate, and unique. Track 3 is the jewel, a pop song about a mariner ship captasizing! The band compares itself to shudder to think and fugazi in the early 90's, while this influence is heard, it is indie pop-rock mature step forward, especially with addition of a cello. The cello gives the band a haunted quality, almost like sitting in a bar, alone. The other 3 songs range from good to great, and make the listener yearn for the next cd or live show, and isn't that what great music is suppose to do? And yes this ep may be too short, but that just guarantees that you'll push repeat.

This is one of my favorite cursive CDs, I just can't stop listening to it. A must for any cursive fan or a great intro to cursive if you want to get a taste of what they are about. Burst and Bloom is the most amazing song, they have such an amazing intensity that is just hard to ignore.

Cursive is one of those rarities found in todays music library. They are the ones that actually write new music and innovate the genre they play in. The lyrics are amazing and rugged to go along with the rough guitar. Buy this cd. Now people might be saying: Why not 5 stars if you like them so much? This cd is not perfect but it deserves to be purchased. Domestica is Cursive's best telling a story of one night through nine songs. But that is a different cd.