& Yet & Yet

Do Make Say Think | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 26, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Constellation
• ASIN: B00006357T
• In-Print Editions: Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #119,511 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Timing, Chord Progressions, and Textures, October 9, 2005

By 

Scott Louis (Houston, Texas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: & Yet & Yet (Audio CD)

Do Make Say Think are an interesting band. Their band title, consisting solely of action verbs, alludes to well...action. The irony is that they never seem to be in a hurry to get anywhere with their music. This is ambient music at its best. You can turn this album on and completely forget that its there, letting it paint the room with its sound while doing something else, or you can sit and pay attention to it, and it holds up to even the most rigorous standards.

This is, in short, good music. It is music to relax to, with a drawn out sense of tension and release, not enough to make it epic, but there in the background. It's relaxing without being forceful about it. There is something wonderful about the band's sense of timing. They seem to know exactly when to shift movements in their songs, achieving an album that never lags or stalls.

The simple fact is that this music makes it difficult to be in a bad mood, which is a great thing to come home to after a crappy day of work or school. I have actually found myself driving home after a bad day excited about finally listening to this album with my shades drawn. It simply is, without sounding like its trying to be, fantastic.

The guitar work is present, technically excellent, yet not overwhelming. The same can be said for the percussion. This is most obvious on "Reitschule," the standout track of the album. The guitars meander around progressions while drumming on a rhythm that seems anachronistic keeps them from grounding themselves to any conventional song structure.

The production, usually my point of contention with music these days, is nearly flawless, which means I never even thought about it. The job of a mixer is to bring out the band, and whoever mixed this (my itunes version doesn't have his name) did a marvelous job.

This is a multilayered album that sounds fresh with each listen, because it is ambient enough to let itself be colored by your mood, while subtly changing it. Overall, a great listen and highly recommended.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars their best album yet, April 18, 2002

By 

somethingexcellent (Lincoln, NE United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: & Yet & Yet (Audio CD)

Although both their self-titled debut and "Goodbye Enemy Airship..." were quite good, "& Yet & Yet" takes Do Make Say Think to a completely different level in terms of their songwriting. Whereas past albums relied more on textures (and they still create some of the lovliest around) and sometimes stretched things on for too long, this album is a smooth, 45-minutes of musical effervescence. Some of their most beautiful songs yet, and one of my favorite albums of the year so far.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A nice subtle aftertaste., August 18, 2003

By 

"aquinasmont" - See all my reviews

This review is from: & Yet & Yet (Audio CD)

Being a part of Canadian post-rock label Constellation (Godspeed You Black Emperor being the label's figurehead) means big shoes to fill for Do Make Say Think. Even harder is the task of trying to keep away from the shadow of jazz-influenced post-rock giants Tortoise. Do Make Say Think succeeds fairly well at doing what they're doing, all odds against them.

I bought this record on a whim. I had never heard anything from this album, but I loved their previous effort, Goodbye Enemy Airship The Landlord is Dead, so at a modest 13 bucks, I picked it up.

The album as a whole is satisfying, but there are some tracks that don't hold up well on their own. Tracks like "Classic Noodlanding" and "Soul and Onward" are accessible and almost catchy, but songs like "End of Music" and "Reitschule", while fitting to the album as a whole, don't play well by themselves.

It was a bit subtle for my tastes at first, but after four or five listens, it began to grow on me. This is a soft, mellow and understated album, perfect for a night by yourself. The only gripe I have with "& Yet & Yet" is the fact that sometimes the heavy influence from Tortoise's 1998 centerpiece "TNT" seems painfully obvious. And unfortunately, TNT is a little more polished than this.

But in the end though, those things won't prevent me from slapping this record on for many a rainy night.