This is the most personal album I've heard. The harmonies have that lovely blending kind of sound that MBV achieved in 'Loveless', and then mixed with the twee guitars and excessive strings, this album has all the ingredients to make me squeal.
And then there's the lyrics. I could go on forever about the lyrics, they are some of the most bold lyrics I've ever laid my ears upon. They are admitting of love, but also anguish at the same time. They portray that bipolar feeling of hatred after leaving someone or being left but still wanting to be back with them as there is still an element of affection. The lyrics show those signs and show that everyone is human and people feel similar emotions, so it is easy to sympathise with.
Also, the female vocalist here is top-notch, I mean she is possibly my favourite female vocalist.
SuedeSwede wrote:
Seeing as I don't think I've actually given this a full review outside of my chart, I'll give it - not a review but - a long summary.
I don't know what to feel, think, or act like during this album. There are stories of hatred, guilt, past love, deceased affection, and an overwhelming dose of the realisation of reality. The songwriters (Brooke/Ghetto) here are of opposing genders, which is very strange to listen to. Considering there is near to no credit given to individual songs, you never know what is coming from who, and I don't think I want to know. My point here is that there are two polar opposites in gender, and the whole album is so lyrically cohesive throughout. That confuses me in such a way that is fascinating, and when the two are harmonising and sharing songs, it's as if they are both having a bond in emotions, and this cannot be broken. They understand each other and, to be honest, each song sounds like both of their experiences merged together. Both Brooke and Ghetto feel the same way, and I don't think this is a coincidence. I like to think that there was, at some point, something between the two of them and that through everything, they can still pull through and create one of the most poignant experiences ever, together. Now, this is not a conclusive fact, so it shouldn't actually contribute anything. But even if they weren't actually together, the two of them are on the exact same page emotionally. This adds so much personality to the album, it makes it sound a lot more heartfelt and it tells listeners that, when you are down, and when you are feeling a sense of loss, may it be death, heartbreak, or just someone close leaving your life, there is so much sympathy throughout the world, and so many people feel the way you do. Additionally, this is actually explored in "it's hard to write this song, it's all a joke, it's all been wrote down by someone who's probably dead". I first heard this album a few weeks after a breakup (which wasn't really that devastating), and I wasn't feeling anything negative about this breakup at that time. I was past her, but what really made me forget about the whole ordeal completely was that lyric. I wrote a song about the breakup (which is bitchy and whiny), and I realised it was just so pointless because this song can be found anywhere, in anyone's mind, all over the world. Every lyric has been explored in some song somewhere, and it was pointless. The song brought nothing contributory to anyone anywhere anyway because it was just about the "pains" I was going through after what was actually a really easy breakup. So, I scrapped it. And I scrapped worrying about the past. Yeah, the past has shaped who you are up to now, but what shapes you even more so, is your future actions. You shouldn't care about your past, and you should move on to try and craft a better you and a better future.
Now, this is very astray from my original point, but if an album can make me waffle this much while still staying on the topic of what I realised after listening to it, then it sure is powerful. And it is powerful, for me at least. If it were a boxer, it would be Muhammad Ali. It floats like an elegant butterfly, the music is so beautifully crafted and rich, it is what all chamber musicians should aspire to sound like. But, under this elegant music, it stings like a bee. The lyrics are so compellingly strong that you are being, to reuse a metaphor, stung like a bee.
There's probably countless contradicting points in here but just take into account I didn't stop typing whilst writing this, so most of it is just trying to word thought processes.
tl;dr: This album is greater than life. _________________
Songs About Leaving means a lot to me. Haven't gotten around to Chicago yet, so I can't vote atm, but I guess I'll go ahead and write about how much I love it. Some of you guys did a good job in nominating some of my favourite albums so I didn't have to. We got Carissa's Wierd, Giles Corey, Third Ear Band, etc.
So, I can't say I studiously focus on the nuances of the lyrics. Mostly I just get snippets of lyrics and the overall vibe. I read what I want into it, right? I'm such a great music listener like that. Well, this is part of...hmm, a trio? A trio of albums I associate with how fucking painful it can be to be in a long distance relationship (the other two being Cerulean by Baths and Strawberry Jam by Animal Collective). It's so autumnal. Not quite warm, not quite cold. Distant but inviting. It's got that vibe down perfectly.
And I think it is just one of the prettiest albums there is. Piano Song is seriously heart melting. Low Budget Slow Motion Soundtrack Song for the Leaving Scene is probably my favourite.
I don't really know what else to say about this album other than it has made me cry quite a few times. It's so lonely but so lovely. Aagh. >_< SuedeSwede is better at putting it into words it seems. But yeah, I'd say it deserves the title masterpiece. It's in a realm all its own.
Chicago's debut was possibly one of the best jazz rock albums ever created. They mastered their instrumentation and managed to create some of the catchiest music I've heard in that particular branch of genre. However, they started to lose it straight after that (even though their self titled is pretty good) and eventually became that less interesting romance band that I'm not too keen on. Simply said, after their second album (this one), they became boring to listen to.
Songs about leaving is a pretty decent album, but I'm not too keen on it so vote to Chicago.
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We got Carissa's Wierd, Giles Corey, Third Ear Band, etc. 
