Now We Can See

The Thermals | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 7, 2009)
• Original Release Date: 2009
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Kill Rock Stars
• ASIN: B001T46UIW
• In-Print Editions: Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #104,406 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Review

''The Thermals have...returned to what they do best - writing undeniably catchy punk tunes.'' --Spin

''[Hutch Harris's] passion and slant come through with a grit and sincerity that recall perhaps the greatest punk rocker of them all, Joe Strummer.'' --Los Angeles Times

''This power trio cranks out insatiable punk rock with ample hooks and time-proven chord progression.'' --Under The Radar

Product Description

2009 album from the Indie favorites. Thermal mainstays Hutch Harris and Kathy Foster recorded Now We Can See as a duo, as they did on 2006's The Body, The Blood, The Machine. Foster performed all drums and bass (and sang for the first time on a Thermals record), while Harris sang lead and played guitar. They returned to Oregon City's Supernatural Sound, with John Congleton (Explosions In The Sky, Polyphonic Spree) producing. The result is the widest, loudest piece of Alternative/Indie/Punk Rock The Thermals have yet unleashed. Lyrically, The Thermals have managed to move past religion and politics, yet remain joyously obsessed with love and death. Though the subject matter may be dark at times, the lyrics, as well as the melodies, remain as catchy and uplifting as ever.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Likeable Post-Punk, April 12, 2009

By 

Marcus Tullius Wardo - See all my reviews

This review is from: Now We Can See (Audio CD)

The Thermals pound out low-fi post-punk. (As the band says on its website, they describe their music as post-punk "because adding 'post-' to any genre automatically makes your music sound smarter.") Their sound is stripped down and straightforward, akin to Green Day or The Strokes. While the sound is simple, the lyrics are smart and sophisticated and the album is a song cycle about life and death, or maybe evolution, or maybe decline and fall, or maybe the circular nature of existence. Or whatever, I don't think the band meant to create something epic but also didn't want stereotypical songs about sex, drugs and rock and roll. This album is light-hearted and fun and worth a listen.

4.0 out of 5 stars They have a unique sound, some find it repetitive, February 19, 2011

By 

The S man "techguy" (Michigan, USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Now We Can See (MP3 Download)

But I personally like it.

Now We Can See is a very popular song (or was), the other songs have a similar sound but I like them. Some call it whiney, but I don't think it is what you would call "typical whiney alternative", because they have meaningful lyrics and a good sound.

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun Listen with Good Variety, but not The Thermals' Best, February 1, 2011

By 

Cole - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Now We Can See [Vinyl] (Vinyl)

My introduction to The Thermals was their excellent "The Body, The Blood, The Machine" which is filled with hook after hook. I really enjoyed the energy of the first 4 tracks, with the title track "Now We Can See" being the clear standout...gotta love the sugary singalong of the "Oh Way Oh Whoa O". The slow-down of At The Bottom of the Sea is appreciated, but the song drags on a bit too long, defeating its point of pacing the album down to give the listener a chance to fully process and appreciate the rush of the first 4 tracks. ATBotS borders on being a bit numbing. "When We Were Alive" kicks off the 2nd half of the album with a nice little bang, but the slower songs/less loud songs on the 2nd half such as "Liquid In Liquid Out" and "I Call Out Your Name" are lacking in hooks. Overall, NWCS is solid in its own right and fun to listen to, but knowing how fun The Thermals can be as on TBTBTM, this record falls short a bit. TBTBTM is nicely split with a quick burst of hooky power-pop-punk in the first half, the nicely split in the middle by a slowed down song with longer, more epic, yet still catchy tracks comprising the second half.