Customer Reviews

I Know About You [Vinyl]

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Ida is one of my favorite live bands, and even though I miss Dan's brother on drums, the new chamber ensemble sound fits them very well. "I Know About You" was recorded before Miggy left and Karla joined. It is the first Ida album I bought, and it's still my favorite.

"Little Things" starts with an incredibly simple yet perfect guitar line, and as with most Ida songs, builds and builds until your heart feels like it's going to burst. Dan and Liz's voices are perfect, alone or in harmony, and I can't imagine living without them (I mean that as the highest possible compliment, rather than in a creepy stalker sense).

"Back Burner" is another wonderful song, with the lyric "like Caliban, you've seen it all without language to use" making a nice arc between Ida and one of my great literature loves, "The Tempest." "Tellings" is a gorgeous, more uptempo song, and "Thank You" pretty much drags out all the pain (e.g. "thank you for giving me nothing"). There is a different version of this available on a 7", without the strings and acoustic guitar.

"When I Was Now" is as close to traditional folk as they get on this album, but Ida maintains a very unique sound thoroughout...balancing bleak raw emotion with moments of exquisite beauty. This is the record that comes to mind when asking Nick Hornby's question "do I listen to pop music because I'm miserable or am I miserable because I listen to pop music?" It isn't all a downer, though. It is often quite the opposite.

If you like Ida, I'd urge you to seek out the song "Ain't No Lie" that was released as a His Name Is Alive song on the 4AD "Anakin" compilation - with Dan and Liz on vocals and (what I assume is) a Warn DeFever acoustic guitar backing. The split 7" they did with Secret Stars also has one of my favorite songs by Ida. Even though that's a song that brought me to tears the first time I heard it (no mean feat, that) the beauty of Ida lies in the contrast between these sublime songs of love and loss followed by wacky Prince covers. How often can you find a combination that perfect? Look for the latter on an Insound Tour Support CD and the "Poor Dumb Bird" 7".

this album is track after track of raw emotion. starting right off with "little things" you know what you're in for. the lyrics this band writes are precise emotion. they know exactly what they are saying. "it's like the words that we said rolled over to play dead. and we kissed them goodbye and never questioned why." i have seen this band three times live and have been brought to tears by their performance everytime. no band has ever done that to me other than this. i can not stress clearly enough how much this record means to me, and if you have any interest in this type of music at all, you would do yourself much much good to buy this record.

i live in nyc and got to see ida play a lot of little shows... the two are romantically involved and that really makes their chemistry in this extremely well-composed album something akin to godliness. no person who likes emo/indie/folk should live without this.

As a musician, I find most "popular" music very disapointing. Ida however, has redifined the boundaries of what we think of as "Popular Music." This is what America's youth and aged alike should be listening to. From haunting melodies, to inspiring lyrics, this cd has it all. The percussion work is far beyond that of professional, it is meaningful. Never have two voices sounded so pure. This cd should not only be a staple of everyone's collection, it should be the highlight as well.

Ida is easily one of the most talented bands performing now. This CD is the perfect introduction. Their songs are pensive and beautiful, sophisticated and memorable. Check it out, yo!

I am new to Ida, I heard them litterally two days ago at the Pedro The Lion show... and I must say, I was ready to leave after seeing Ida. This band is awe inspiring live, and I would say everyone in the crowd agreed with me. I picked up this album at the show, and have listened to it over and over again... it doesn't match the live performance, but it is amazing none the less. Go see Ida live, you will not regret it!

From TEARS AND SAINTS by Emil Cioran: "Anna Magdalena Bach tells us in her family chronicle that JS Bach often meditated on death. Even without her testimony, it is obvious that for Bach preoccupation with death and nostalgia for heaven are sources of the sublime."

That's the subtext of this record. In case you didn't know. This record was motivated by a nostalgia for Heaven. And what it evokes is a nostalgia for Heaven. (As if I'm not already overburdened enough with that emotion courtesy of Karla's cuddle-scrumptiousness.)

i was given a taped copy of this album last spring, and went out and bought the cd immediately. it beacame the soundtrack to my spring. the guitars and lyrics are so pure and real. this is good if you are into the fusion of folk,rock, indie, and emo.

Three years ago a close freind of my asked me to go to a show with her.We went and someone was selling all these albums and the one we both knew we had to have was a band called *IDA*. They guy who sold it said once we listened to it we'd never be the same. He was right. Since then it is still my favorite Album. The lyric's and the passion they present in their music is inspiring. If you haven't heard them I recommend you buy it. It's the story of our lives. If you love folk, and emo you'll never get rid of this CD.

GRACE SLICK OF THE JEFFERSON AIRPLANE FAME MAY HAVE HAD A BETTER VOICE-AND THAT IS HARD TO EVEN SAY THAT~ I THINK A LOT OF NOTES ARE FLAT AND THE MUSICALITY JUST NOT OF GOOD QUALITY. THERE ARE SO MANY BEAUTIFUL VOICES OUT THERE AND THIS GROUP FALLS SHORT.