I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One

Today's Music That Jason Recommends A Lot And Then Some is I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One, by Yo La Tengo. I thought long and hard about how to classify this album, how to describe it in concise terms, and I just couldn't do it. A lot of that has to do with the fact that I've been trying to write this entry for a few days and it will probably be fairly disjointed by the time it actually is completed. Mostly, though, it has to do with how interesting this album is.

This is a Yo La Tengo album, bearing many of its hallmarks (instruments playing against time signatures, some upbeat rock songs and some quieter using vocals as more of an effect than a lead). It's quirky, and while that word is usually reserved for things that are consciously trying for quirky, this has more to do with Yo La Tengo's subtle sense of humor and playing against type. Sometimes there is fuzzy, distorted guitar, sometimes it's mostly bass and piano, sometimes both. This album does a really great job of changing tempo and mood between songs. Some other YLT albums are good but comfortably softer than this one; this album is louder and more intrusive than a fair amount of their other work, and I, for one, think it really does the band justice. I wouldn't call it 'hard rock' by any means though; that isn't a good or bad thing, it just is what it is.

If there is a criticism of this album, it's maybe that the vocals aren't dynamic enough. They certainly have range, but it seems as though they don't always match the intensity and tempo of the songs, and sometimes just keep up when I think they should be leading. However, this isn't enough to detract from a diverse, intriguing soundscape.

As for individual tracks, well, there are several standouts. "Moby Octopad" is pretty great, "We're an American Band" and "Little Honda" are everything that cover songs should be. "Sugarcube" is a nice, upbeat, clever rock song. "Deeper into Movies" is maybe the best track on the whole album, "Autumn Sweater" is a nice change of pace. "Green Arrow" is a real change of pace, and kind of a pleasant surprise; "Return to Hot Chicken" is a marvelous album opener. I could probably give you an opinion on every song on this album, and that alone should tell you something. (Also, if you hadn't noticed, the song titles are pretty great, too.)

So, to summarize, this album is basically the cat's meow. It's not great workout music, and not something you could just fall asleep to, but if you like clever, engaging music that rocks just a little, this is worth your time. I think I found this album at a time when I was less impressionable than I was in the awakening of my musical awareness, so I can't say it affected me as much as some others, but I have always thought highly of it.

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