What a solid record this is -- and one that certainly wears its influences on its sleeves. Jesse Lacey and co. not only comprise what is, in my opinion, the best band out today, but they also have incredible taste in music. On The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me (a name conceived after a conversation about Daniel Johnston -- awesome), you can hear shades of the loudness of The Jesus Lizard, the drone of The Jesus and Mary Chain, the lo-fi of Archers of Loaf, and the melody of Modest Mouse, all the while creating a sound completely singular to BN. This record is their most poetic, noisy, artistic and darkest record to date, vastly outshining their two previous efforts. Lacey's lyrical ability are essentially unmatched in the genre, and they're at the forefront here. The musicianship takes a step up, too, with each track boasting a different sound and style -- the two "instrumental" tracks are some of the most engaging of Brand New's career.
Although they are notorious for being just as mysterious as their music (although this image is completely fabricated by the emo-drones on AP.net with nothing better to talk about), the band seems to be working on some new material. TDAGARM was about as highly anticipated as an album can get -- this next one seems to be even more so.
Great album. Great band. Fuck yes.
Key tracks: "Sowing Season (Yeah)", "Jesus Chirst", "Degausser", "Limousine (MS Rebridge), "You Won't Know", "Luca", "Untitled"
Next week: 2007
Hint: Awesome last name...
So I think this next one will be the last one -- I'll save my favorite album of 2008 for the requisite end of year list. This has been fun though, and I'll most likely end up doing something pretty similar in the following days...wait and see.
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