This is going to be a new feature on my blog for a bit. This summer, Song, By Toad Records released several new albums and Matthew sent along review copies during the time I didn't have a working computer. So when I got one, I decided that I not only wanted to write about the three albums that came out this summer, but I also wanted to write about the other bands on this label that I have loved in the past couple years.
What you're going to find in these Toad Tuesday posts is that I have a hard time figuring out Song, By Toad artists. I don't know what it is, but I can't put into words why I can't stop listening to them. And it's true for every band/singer I've heard on the label. It makes it hard to write posts about them, but it makes the effort so worth it.
And now without any further ado, Meursault.
So I'm on the treadmill (it's still a kind of new thing and it's weird for me to start a blog post by talking about it) and I'm laughing.
I wanted to listen to
Something For the Weakened one more time before I started writing about it and the thought occurred to me that I could be listening to it while I ran. I was laughing because the impression that I had of the music was that it was very enjoyable, but not uptempo and kind of a downer.
Don't get me wrong, I like music that fits that description. Alicia Silverstone called it "sad bastard music" in
Clueless, if I'm not mistaken.
But the music that came into my ears tonight while I ran was anthemic. It was inspiring!
"We will not be weakened anymore"is the mantra that makes up the majority of "Thumb", the first track. And when I heard this, I felt the weakness leave my body. I felt stronger, more confident. Now, maybe I was just taking that feeling and reapplying it to the music that followed, but the rest of the tracks I listened to had this glint of sunshine that I hadn't noticed before.
I know that there is a track-by-track breakdown of what the thoughts behind each song were, but I'm too excited about my interpretation to look it up.
Listening to Meursault (and this is true for many SBT bands) is a little like being in a dream. I am fully engaged, loving my surroundings, excited and curious about what's around the next corner. And then it's over. And I'm disoriented and have that nostalgic feeling I sometimes get upon waking. The only solution to this weird feeling is to listen again. And again and again.
Yes, I'll be returning to this particular dream many times.
Meursault - Thumb from
Something for the Weakened (
buy it here!) (
or here!)
And you can go
HERE to look at all the splendor of the Song, By Toad Catalog. It'll help prepare you for future installments of this little feature!
