Customer Reviews

Rising Tide

5 star:		(71)
4 star:		(34)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

i wouldn't believe a negative word you hear about this album. i'm a sdre fan and i enjoy their albums as well, but this is the first one i heard and it's captivated me from the first listens. i've listened to it a million times and it never fails to leave me uplifted - it's like a breath of fresh air.. but it rocks! the band is just really amazing here.. i would go so far as to say it's sdre at their VERY BEST. this is their PEAK. some people claim it's too prog-ish, and yes, it does bear a resemblance to rush due to the high vocals and prominent bass, but who cares? the songs are amazing. it's also interesting to see how their sound evolved through their different albums to end up here.

These underground bands have some rabid fans. Words like "Sell-out" and "Poseur" get used a little too often; as though the plebians shouting the profanities were being complimented by the accusations. No matter. Truth is I CAN hear why many fans would be disappointed with Sunny Day Real Estates last two albums. "How it Feels to Be Something On" sounds worlds apart from the basement recording "Diary." And "Rising Tide" deepens the gap. But something critics and fans will NEVER understand is that you can like two things. Punk and progressive rock are mortal enemies, polar opposites, like water and oil... or so we've been told. Try this - take a CD, put it into your player, listen to it, and ask yourself this question, "Do I like this?" Internet critics have taught people to ask "Am I supposed to like this?" or "Is this an acceptable genre" or even, heaven forbid, "is it COOL to like this?" Now try this: if you answered "Yes" to "do I like this?", your answer to "is this cool?" should also be yes. Feel weird? You'll get used to it.

Now back to the record. I love (absolutely love) both sides of the "heads-tails" coin that is SDRE's career. "Diary" is simply one of the great albums of the 90's and one of the greatest debuts in alternative music history, if not rock history. "How it Feels to Be Something On" was and is a masterpiece, both on paper and in reality. Most fans can accept this. But "Rising Tide" being a good record? "But, it meshes indie and prog! Those are polar opposites on the cool spetrum!" The music however, speaks for itself. The hat-trick worked. Jeremy Enigk emerges with the best vocals of his career, and this indie band melds punk concpets ("Snibe") that sound like Rush ("Television," "Rising Tide"). Recreating the wheel's not a bad way for the 90's best indie band to call it a day.

Overall: 8 out of 10.

The newest effort by SDRE is by far not the best. But it is still beautiful in every way as every other release of their's. The album starts of with a bang with 'Killed by an Angel' and slows down a bit. Then 'Snibe' song #5 picks up with the normal SDRE effect. Followed by 'The Ocean'. It is tied with 'Faces in Disguise' as the two which are my favorites. Then the album ends with the title track, a good song to end an album. It leaves you wanting more. So you end up listening to the entire thing over again. Enigk's lyrics are still emotional and poetic as always, and end up singing or humming along. Goldsmith's drumming is magnificent as it is in the others. And Hoerner's guitaring leaves you unaware that of absence of Enigk's guitar since he plays the bass on this glorious release. All in all it is a great album, but it is a close forth to the other spectacular albums released by this unique and talented band. There have been only a few cds that I have bought on the day they were released and this is one I am glad I did.

Sunny Day Real Estate; what else can be said, one of the most underrated unappreciated bands ever. I can still remember over ten years ago when I was first exposed to the song Seven and was struck by its ferocity and uniqueness. After quite some time, life happened and I momentarily forgot about SDRE; until one day, I came across Diary in a record store and bought the CD. I was struck by the fact that all of the tracks on Diary had merit and the album was put together quite well. After a few years, I sampled How It Feels To Be Something On, and was so impressed by it that I decided to get it on vinyl. Having been thoroughly impressed by HIFTBSO and Sunny Day's new progressive sound, I had reservations about their new album being any better. As soon as the opportunity presented itself, I bought The Rising Tide on vinyl. After a few initial listenings; I wasn't very convinced, but as I continued listening to the album I became enchanted by its grandness and soon found that it became my favorite SDRE album. Sunny Day Real Estate is truly one of the few indie/alternative rock bands that I could honestly say improved with every album. It is sad to see that they have left the music world, but even sadder to see that they never got the recognition they deserved.

This is an exuberant, rich-sounding exploration of pop music, with a calculated prog edge, kind of like what would happen if you crossed _Hold Your Fire_ era Rush with Janes Addiction, a radical branch from the tree the band planted with _How It Feels To Be Something On_. As such it is more than likely bound to irritate most of SDRE's hardcore fans from the first several albums - the emo is certainly there, but it just doesn't have that indie-rock Sub-Pop intimacy. The themes and lyrics are grandiose and the production, although warm, full and overall technically amazing, is sometimes overwhelming. In general producer Lou Giordiano has done an amazing job of neatly stacking the excesses that the band decided to embrace and making it palatable.

I think the band should definitely pursue the direction that the stunning opener "Killed By An Angel" and especially "Snibe" follow, the latter almost sounding like what Queensryche was trying to do (but ultimately failed) with _Hear In The Now Frontier. Both songs are resounding successes, with the catchy "Disappear", the eastern-tinged mysticism of "Fool In The Photograph" and the sultry euro-pop of "Faces In Disguise" not far behind. Another reviewer remarked that "Television" is the song the band is daring you to hate, but I believe that most people will find the turning point at "The Ocean", its goofy bright and sunny lyrics seemingly swiped from Jon Anderson's Yes songbook. Having said that, if you are frightened by the fact that I have mentioned Rush, Jane's Addiction, Queensryche and Yes in this album review, you probably aren't going to get it. The record ends with the epic multilayered title track, fading softly into a shimmering maelstrom of white noise and echoes. Beautiful and bound to be misunderstood. (4-1/2 stars)

Oh, man. They're going their own way. I really enjoy this one. Still, I think I like the last one more. All the S.D.R.E albums are very good. It's impossible to actually say which oné that's the best. Theyré all unique in their own way. I can understand that some people don't like their new direction. It's obvious that they have changed since the earlier albums. But I don't see the change as something bad. The great melodies and lyrics are still there. It's great that a band develops in this way. Don't be surprised if they sound different on the next album...

_The Rising Tide_, the fifth release and fourth studio album from Sunny Day Real Estate, is a hard album to pin down at first. It opens with the rockin' "Killed by an Angel," a track on which Jeremy Enigk's vocals are mixed expertly, sounding raw and evil. This is a fast, loud song, and one of my favorites on the album.

The next song, "One," sounds like a mix of three songs from SDRE's last album, _How it Feels to be Something On_. With the prog-rock instrumentation (and shaky lyrics) of "Roses in Water," the granduer and bombast of "Guitars and Video Games," and the immediacy of "The Prophet," it really is a great song, as long as you don't pay too much attention to the somewhat cliched lyrics of the chorus.

"Rain Song" is a pretty little number (and catchy) that almost sounds like it could fit in with some of Jeremy's solo material. It has a really cool, strange little acoustic guitar intro that the listener is suddenly dropped back into after the first verse. Very nice. The next couple of songs are the first ones that scream, "Look at me! Look at me! I'm prog-rock! " This isn't to say they're not good, though. "Snibe" is one of the best songs on the album, and "Disappear" is one of many songs on the album that, although you would never expect to actually hear it on modern rock radio, at least have portions that sound radio-ready. Other songs with "radio-ready portions" include "One," "Fool in the Photograph," and "Television."

"Fool in the Photograph," is the first song on the album that really doesn't do much for me. It's dark and moody, with those now-expected minor chords, but when it's over the only thing you're left feeling is: "What happened?" The song kind of just ends about 4 minutes after it starts, with not a whole lot worth remembering going on in the meantime.

"Tearing in my Heart" begins with a bizarre and unexpected female voice telling us to listen to some children talking. Although I can't figure out for the life of me what this has to do with the song that follows, it scares the hell out of me every time I hear it. The song itself is nice and pretty, if fairly uneventful.

"Television" is the song that the band is either daring us to hate or daring us to love, and I can't figure out which. Most of the lyrics are boderline God-awful, with Jeremy proclaiming, "She's cruel and free, like television." Not only is this simile that the whole song is based upon cheap, corny, and grossly impersonal (the word "television" should never be in any SDRE song, ever), but it also just doesn't make a whole lot of sense. At the same time, though, the song moves along on a groovy, bouncy bassline, and the song as a whole sounds like a cross between the Apples in Stereo and some crappy 80s new wave. It is nothing like the SDRE we know, and in fact very cheesy. But the song embraces this cheesiness, it loves it. Jeremy's voice soars and bites at all the right times, and you can't help but bop your head to the beat. I really can't figure this one out.

Moving backward a bit, the sixth track, "The Ocean," is probably the best on the album and maybe one of Sunny Day's best songs on any album. It reminds me a lot of the title track from _How it Feels..._ and it works marvelously in its place right after "Snibe." The album also closes on a strong note, with "Faces in Disguise" and "The Rising Tide." The former is a surreal, Radiohead-like trip through dreamland. Dan Hoerner has no part in it, according to the liner notes, except maybe in the composition of lyrics. "The Rising Tide" is a good song, too, kind of like "Days Were Golden," except not as emotionally affecting.

This is a pretty good album. It really doesn't stack up that well against _How it Feels to be Something On_, but how could it? It's also not as powerful as SDRE's first two releases, but much more accessible and I will probably reach for it more often than either of those. The direction the band is moving in seems interesting, but I think they should probably drop Lou Giordano, who produced it, and who I think is responsible for the somewhat radio-friendly sound. I have a gut feeling that the next album from these guys is going to be truly amazing, and I really can't wait.

I was absolutely obsessed with this CD when it came out back in 2000. This is one of those "artistic statement" albums that are difficult to pigeonhole into a category. Their music is so subversive and unusual while simultaneously being so melodic and familiar that you can almost imagine record company execs puzzling over it's marketability with furrowed brows.

Sunny Day Real Estate play a sort of post-modern alternative rock that is both original and intelligent, like an even more surreal and nihilistic Radiohead. Frontman Jeremy Enigck lays down very melodic but eerie-sounding reverb-drenched vocals over a layered, dissonant wall of distorted guitar textures, creating a very unique and dreamlike vibe. Combined with the surrealist poetic lyrics which somehow manage to be disturbing, hallucinogenic and existentialist yet hopeful at times, the overall feel of the album is very compelling and original. Bo one quite sounds like this band. The songwriting and musicianship are also top-notch, with enough hooks to get stuck in your head, but enough use of unusual chord voicings, time changes, and skillful manipulation of effects to be interesting to progressive music fans-something not often found in your standard alt-rock "emo" album. This album has the avant-garde vibe of Radiohead's "Kid A" with better songwriting, musicianship and lyrics and without the pretense. Very, very highly recommended.

Some say Sunny Day Real Estate was lost for good when Jeremy converted to Christianity. And while their out of nowhere return on How It Feels To Be Something On was a departure from the more grungy emo of LP2 and Diary, it's a stretch to say the band went right down the toilet.

The lyric content definatly has a more spiratual overtone to them than before, evidence of that is apparent on Killed By An Angel. But it is done in a way that doesn't sound preachy at all, but comes out like Jeremy is pouring out his heart and soul. Musically The Rising Tide sees SDRE's venture into prog rock become more apparent. The way One flows from loud electic guitar to mellow acoustics is breath taking to say the least. Rain Song sounds like a more refiened song that Jeremy would have had on his solo album with it's dreamy strings and piano outro.

The climax of the album is the stunning title track, it closes the album out perfectly. While the album does have it's not so great spots (Television comes to mind with it's horrid lyrics) it's nearly flawless. I can't wait to hear what Jeremy's new band The Fire Theft is going to sound like.

When I first heard Sunny Day's first two CDs, Diary and their enigmatically untitled album which many have called The Pink Album, I was hesitant. It took me a good while to realize that these guys weren't crap, but a talented group who wrote a very original style of indie rock, or as some might say "emocore". Therefore I was quite sad to learn that the Sunny Day Real Estate legacy was over, that the band had broken up quite some time before I'd even heard of them. But wait, what's this? Internet rumors that Sunny Day Real Estate might be getting back together? That they are getting back together? That they have a new album in stores? It was tough to find around here, but Sunny Day's unexpected third album, How It Feels To Be Something On was, well, unexpected! Gone was a group of indie rockers, replaced by a very unique emo group with beautiful, melodic music. The album was amazing but it was missing something...I guess maybe the harder edge that their first two albums had. The Rising Tide makes up for that missing link, combining their agressive beginnings with their more melodic and mature-sounding resurrection. It would be tough for me to describe this album without heavy uses of the words "unique" and "perfection". Unique because it's completely different from anything I have ever heard before....I don't think you'd be able to find a vocalist who can sing quite like Jeremy Enigk, or a band that can write their style of music. And when you break down the music itself, it can only be described as perfection. Every little note, chord, and sound is exactily where it should be. Sometimes that means a lone guitar standing out amongst the rest of the parts, while others it means a mosaic of instrumental sounds that blend so perfectly with each other. A word of caution to those who read the flowery praises of this band from me: this is not a mainstream CD. It's not for everyone, but if you're looking for something different, against the grain, very emotional, this is the right CD for you.