Thom's Lazy Eye: November 2010

11.21.2010

Albums from the past and Snowden

So recently I’ve thought about starting something new on this nearly dead blog. Well, I guess I should say I’ve thought about starting something OLD on this nearly dead blog (if you’re offended that I call TLE nearly dead, then let’s be honest—out of the many possible contributors, about 4 or 5 people are carrying the majority of the weight right now…and that weight is just barely being carried).

Other, bigger blogs do it, but I think we can as well. I was thinking about friends and such, and I realized that there are various albums from the past handful of years that we all secretly (or not so secretly) revisit over and over again. These are the albums that one or two of us loved from 1999, 2005, 2007, 2000, etc. They are often albums that—when released—were received with little-to-no critical acclaim. For some reason, though, we go back to them. It’s like walking into Cheesecake Factory – we both hate it and love it at the same time (the portions are so big!!! – it’s like three meals for the rest of the week!!!). We all have them, and we all listen to them. It’s time for them to come out of the woodwork, and for them to show off all of their dirty glory in the soft, warm glow of Thom’s Lazy Eye.

Because I am the one who introduced this idea, I’ll start.

My dirty laundry album is Snowden’s Anti-Anti from 2006, and I am prepared to defend it.

Snowden knows how to look cool. Their lyrics and appearance project a “we-soooo-don’t-(but do)care-about-everything-you-don’t-(but really do)care-about” attitude. The tone, sound, and feeling of the album position the band as either super cool or super ridiculous. I’m not really sure which one is the truth.

Their lyrics, ranging from the “I don’t care” anthem of “Anti-Anti” to the silly and crafty wordplay of “Innocent Heathen,” speak to the 20 or 30 something’s contrasting feelings of apathy and desire. By this I mean a feeling of apathy toward modern society in general, but a genuine desire for something more, even when that desire is horribly misguided and/or banal. And sometimes—and I’ve come to realize this even more recently—the desire to feel something is important. I don’t necessarily struggle with this very often, but I know others do. Snowden captures this apathetic sentiment, and turns it into something bigger, grander. Does that sound so ridiculous?

I think the most important and defining characteristic of Snowden is that they have a sound. It’s clear and pronounced, and because of that, I am willing to forgive many of their faults. Enjoy.