I Can't Go on I'll Go on

The Broken West, Apex Manor | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 23, 2007)
• Original Release Date: 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Merge Records
• ASIN: B000LP6KOO
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #84,938 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars In the silence you don't know, you must go on..., January 23, 2007

By 

Guy "Rock Fan" (NYC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: I Can't Go on I'll Go on (Audio CD)

If you read any of the music blogs out there, you'll know that I'm not the first to say the following: This is a record that will likely stand as one of the great musical statements of its generation.

Not since the Strokes' debut has a band appeared with so cohesive and persuasive a document of the feelings of people their age. Superficially, there is very little to recommend a comparison to the Strokes. The Broken West feature harmonies, handclaps, keyboards and an expansive production palette. Yet, both are the standout bands of their relative cities and scenes (in case of the Broken West, the Silver Lake/Echo Park power pop scene), elevated above the rest of the pack due to the excellence of songs, production, lyrics, musicianship and no small amount of charisma.

Just as the Strokes have their own clear influences, it is not difficult to tell that the Broken West adore their Brian Wilson, ELO, George Harrison and Alex Chilton LPs. "I Can't Go On, I'll Go On" isn't an exercise in replication, however. Instead, the band reforms these sounds of innocence and lost love. It weaves them into a blanket that it drapes over a dystopic vision of youth and young manhood in which we are guilty by association with the world into which we are born and we question if we'll ever find love enough to lose. For all its sunshine and "ooh-ooh-ooh"s, there's a tension to this music, a feeling that at any moment the curtain might be pulled back and we'll be forced to reckon with the fears we keep hidden from others and, mostly, ourselves.

The Broken West embrace and repurpose decades of power pop music, mix in their own ideas and outlook and emerge with a stunning and coruscating record of a life that is helpless but not without hope. I've been listening to this record in pieces since various songs began leaking onto the internet months ago. Today I was finally able to hear the album several times and, as catchy as the individual songs are, it really should be listened to as a complete thought.

This is a truly special album.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Muddling Through, January 18, 2008

By 

Lloyd Komesar - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: I Can't Go on I'll Go on (Audio CD)

After 3 listens to these largely undifferentiated tracks, I became resigned to the conclusion that my enjoyment had quickly plateaued. The musicianship is adequate at best, the rhythmic elements are not particularly inspiring and the vocals are submerged in the mix. There is simply not enough "there" there and it feels repetitive in spots. For the limited range that this music trades in, it seemed passable, but it would be far down my list of go-to stuff on the I-Pod. I could go on, but I won't.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great sound, February 11, 2007

By 

Christine G. Neikirk "portergrace" (norfolk, va USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: I Can't Go on I'll Go on (Audio CD)

The Broken West is the first band in some time that provided a double-take moment when "panning for gold" on XMU. You have to sift through a lot of junk, but once in a while, you come across a real nugget like The Broken West's Brass Ring. Keep up the good work.