Customer Reviews

Perfect Addiction

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

 

 

I'm just going to say that this is their finest album, the others still should be listened to. For fans of murder by death and black heart procession.

Pensive, melancholic, and gray, Desert City Soundtrack's slow brewing piano-led rock will cause you to go into hiding from human contact.

Well, there's definitely nothing wrong with escaping life to spend a little alone time with your troubled thoughts. Perfect Addiction is definitely a choice soundtrack for that contemplative mind. However it may have you second guessing forgotten choices, wander "What if?," and reflect quietly on portraits of past and personal demons. Regret will eat away at you like a decaying cavity, but Perfect Addiction will make you stay and confront it, even if you are on a sinking ship.

Portland, Oregon's Desert City Soundtrack beautifully saunters through twelve tracks that remain alive, although very aching, while gradually fading into each other. Through beautifully numbing tracks like "Whatever the Cost," "Mothball Fleet (Counterattack)," and "First Sickness," the listener becomes entangled with heartache. The acoustic pickings of "Its Not that Bad" echoes early stripped-down Sebadoh, while the piano and trumpet in the saddened "Batteries" will cause you to freeze: "This landscape is flat / You never know how far out it goes / You cannot turn back / Your footprints are covered in the tracks of the past."

Depending on your mindset, Desert City Soundtrack's Perfect Addiction will either drown out your indecisions or flair up past memories, but this haunting release is definitely a lovely storm to get bathed in.

With a name like Desert City Soundtrack, many people are quickly to dismiss them as just "another one of those bands with 'soundtrack' in their name". So I assume people might compare them to the radically different (and not nearly as good) Motion City Soundtrack, who associate themselves with the emo scene; maybe not as directly as some bands, but they belong.

In my opinion, Funeral Car, their last full length release is without a doubt one my favorite records ever. In fact, it would be near the top on my 50 best albums on the last 20 years.

While not as emotionally charged as Funeral Car, Perfect Addition is certainly a solid release. One thing to note upon first listening is there not really any screaming, per say. Matt Carillo screams, but it's mostly inaudible. Take for example, "No Signal". There are lyrics; you just can't hear them. The distortion is still there from guitar, and Cory Gray is still pounding on his keyboard keys. As long as Carillo and Gray are together, DCS will exist. They've proven that. Since their last record, drummer Caitlin Love and bassist Mike Casanova have left. Brian Wright has taken over the drums, and he's just as effective if not more. "No Signal" again showcases his abilities. A bass player has not been replaced simply because you don't need bass when you have piano as the leading instrument. Even being a trio, they are more successful in their musical endeavors than most five piece bands -- mostly because of their strive for passionate music.

I do have complaints, though. As Alternative Press wrote about Mary Timony's Ex Hex, "there is a certain brilliance to the album".... but I think it is lost somewhere. The first four tracks are so damn good, that it kind of ruined the rest of the album for me. The remaining eight tracks are generally slower and denser with more filler. It sounds like they were listening to Ben Folds or Radiohead's Amnesiac and Hail to the Thief for a little too long, because the sounds of piano on those albums stuck with them. Ballads are a good way to describe the remainder of the album.

As I mentioned, "No Signal" is absolutely fantastic; it's a step in the right direction. It's so interesting to hear where the song takes you, and it's only four minutes. It seems twice as long. "Let's Throw Knives" is also excellent with the perfect drive and build right until the end. "Batteries" and the remake of "First Sickness" are the beginning of the songs that drag, and by the end you are wishing there was an extension. However, "Mothball Fleet" is a nice addition before the interlude ("Good Times Without"), and "It's Not That Bad" is a welcome surprise. Well, don't get me wrong, I like the album a lot. It's just not a masterpiece like Funeral Car is.

The album does seem a bit rushed, not because it's shorter, but because it doesn't flow nearly as well as Funeral Car. I think I should correctly order the tracks myself to have a more consistent album throughout. It really feels more like two EPs split up and scattered.

Funeral Car did EVERYTHING right, defying genre and incorporating so many interesting elements. That album successfully dragged me into indie music as the albums of Murder by Death also did. And for that, I cannot thank them enough. This material isn't essential, but it's a sufficient change. You could even call it a progression in some ways.

song intros are drawn out and redundant. Vocal melodies are forgetable. Maybe i should have got a nickelback cd, or better yet, gone to sleep.