All I have to keep me company is We Are The City’s Violent and a bunch of other things that need to be done, but they’ve clocked in third on my list, so here we go. I often preview records before I jot them down in my calendar, but when you have a pile as big as Kanye’s ego, you tend to forget which artist sounds like what, so it’s always a surprise when listening to the record in full for the first time. With Violent I got a case of Deathcab mixed with some experimental trips that made for a progressive time. No, not that annoying auto insurance lady.
“Bottom of the Lake” set the tone with what I can only refer to as a whimsical acid trip. When teaming things like “it doesn’t have to be this way” with the title, I could only think this was a murder put to song. I liked it, but that’s because, well never mind why…Moving on before you get too suspicious. A lot of the record passed me by towards the beginning and the end, but it was a chunk in the middle that grabbed me.
“Friends Hurt” had a nostalgic ring to it and then went into this idea that you hurt when your friends do. The experimentation seemed to end here because this one was a straight up indie ditty. The pace picked up right after with “I Am, Are You?” and the contrast between the two was something I appreciated back to back. The last in this triad of Violent gems, “20 Ft. Up” relied on the piano and it paid off.
It was nice of We Are The City to keep me company in the madness that is my hectic freelance lifestyle, but our time together has come to a halt. If you like bands like Rah Rah and Hallerado, then We Are The City aren’t too far from your musical tastes. Violent is out now on Hidden Pony Records, so go and get it.
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