Cursive
The Storms of Early Summer: Semantics of Song
Saddle Creek
I first saw Cursive over a year ago at the Hardback in Gainesville. I was impressed enough to buy the Blinding Stars CD, but a bit disappointed in how they had captured their sound on disc. Blinding Stars was okay, but didn’t keep me coming back for more. When I got this CD in the mail, I was really blown away at how much Cursive had improved. Storms is catchy and well-paced from beginning to end. I rarely think of a CD as having no weak songs, but this is certainly the case here.
Disparate parts blend seamlessly into one another, giving the sense of a vast, unified whole. There’s just enough tension within these songs to create the feel that they’re stretching for something they will never reach. This is what emo should be, transcendental, an attempt to express the inexpressible with words and sound. storms is among the best records I’ve heard from any of the Midwest Emo Hero bands (Giants Chair, Get Up Kids, Boys Life, et al.). In fact, I’d put this right up there with Braid. My one gripe would be that the vocals are somewhat strained and off key at times. Most emo lovers find this endearing. Not me. But I can see how it fits in thematically with what Cursive are doing with their music. While much of emo has grown stale to me this year, I will continue to listen to this.
Saddle Creek Records, P.O. Box 8554, Omaha, NE 68108-0554; http://members.aol.com/CreekRec
