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TaughtMe
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ReadyToGoUnder
Crying Girl Records
Release: 10/05/2004
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Rated:
Review by:
Jason Warner
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There are certain albums that come along that are hard to
describe. Sometimes the artist finds a way to express
themselves that transcends my ability to explain in words.
Sometimes the music is the only way. TaughtMe is a good
example of such a band. Their debut album on Crying Girl
Records, ReadyToGoUnder defies adequate
description. But, first, let me tell you that Crying Girls
Records is now home of two of the three albums I've
reviewed that have received a perfect rating of 5 out of 5.
This label knows what good music is.
TaughtMe is a sort of amalgamation of many different things.
Take one part electronic drum loops, one part acoustic
guitar, one part ambient noises, some keyboards, a rough
edgy electric guitar here and there, and some bass
sequencing, and you have the music. Add some airy sweet
vocals and you have the complete package: an album that
you actually want to listen to all the way through. The lyrics
are simple, but poetic and maybe even a little profound.
Blake Henderson sings about normal stuff, but he does it in a
way that made me really identify with the music. Some
songs have lots of words. Some have very few. Either way,
the vocals are a piece of the larger musical picture rather
than the sole focus. The music is, in a word, beautiful. The
textures are lush, and there are many things going on that
only repeated listening could bring out. I especially liked
this album in headphones where I could hear the creative
use of the entire stereo field. Left, right, left, right… no it's
not a march, it's the music swirling around your head, with
you lost somewhere in the middle… lost, but not
scared.
ReadyToGoUnder is the sounds I hear in my
head when I am alone. I don't know how to describe it any
other way. TaughtMe is the kind of music everyone can like
because it has elements of so many different kinds of music
in it. The arrangements are creative and perfect, with all the
right sounds in all the right places. Experimental? Yes,
somewhat, but not in any far out way that makes the music
hard to listen to. Think of the noisy parts of Wilco's
Yankee Hotel Foxtrot with the pop sensibility of
Brian Wilson.
ReadyToGoUnder is kind of minimalist, kind of
solemn, very beautiful haunting music. The future looks
bright for TaughtMe, with plans for expansion of personnel
and many new songs in the works. So, drive your Internet
browser directly over to the Crying Girl Records Web
site, where you can buy the album, and check for
updates from TaughtMe and the other great bands on the
record label's roster. |
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