Quite possibly the most moving gig I have ever been privileged enough to be at. And with my beautiful girlfriend beside me, it's hard to imagine how it could have been better. (Well apart from if I proposed that night...)
This band have for the past few years been up there with my favourites in the rock ballad genre. And I'm sure most of you will have heard classics such as "iris", "dizzy", and "acoustic no 3" (dawsons creek theme).
So when I received this album, somewhat unexpectedly, in the post from a friend not too long after release, I was delighted! (Thanks Donna!)
It starts off in the trademark goo goo dolls fashion, with emotive music fading in, and then the unmistakable vocal talent of Jonn Rzeznik starts with the song "stay with you". Nice way to start, setting the mood for the rest of the CD. It's, as always, a great hook, and no way did I want to be missing
out on the rest of the contents of this one.
The classic emotional combination of beautifully composed backing music, melodic guitars, and the smooth voice of Rzeznik, all make this an outstanding album. And right from the first track, as I said, you know that it is meant to pull slightly on the heart strings. Which it certainly does. I am unashamed to say that I shed a few tears earlier on while listening to the song "feel the silence".
With lyrics like "...you lie awake at night, with ... eyes that never cry...you remain a promise unfulfilled...", it's hard not to feel moved by it.
Like the rest of the offerings so far from these guys, there is so much put into the lyrics especially, and also the anthemic piano, strings, and guitar sections to make for a really inspiring album. The words of the track after "feel the silence", on the song, "better days", illustrate this perfectly. Especially at this special time of the year.
"...you asked me what I want this year...I'll try to make it kind and clear... 'cause I don't need boxes wrapped in strings, designer love and empty things, just a chance that maybe we'll find better days." No idea how it could be possible to really listen to that, and not be challenged.
"...that's faith and trust and peace while we're alive,and the one poor child who saved this world... "
I've tried in the past to ignore words like that, but failed. So hopefully this year will be different. And I might try a little harder to give something back.
Continuing the themes already put forward in the earlier songs on here, and i suppose following on from previous albums ("Dizzy up the Girl" and "Gutterflower."), the songs "listen" and "become", add to the amazingly moving, and inspiring, words.
In these, as you might imagine, the emphasis is on growing as a person, and learning from the experience, and wisdom of others. These songs are a nice starting point. I have to admit, that thanks in part to some of these songs, recently I have been changing my attitudes towards myself and others, in some ways. And I never knew how satisfying it could be to just stop trying so hard to please, and let go of some of the pressure I put on myself.
"Let love in", being as it is, a fantastic album, can be both eye-opening and challenging, somehow without any judgemental, or 'holier than thou' undertones. Impressively composed and organised, this album just gets better and better the more attention you give it. When you take a little time to reflect on any of the words, I have found, it really starts to hit home, and really move me to reconsider where my priorities really lie.
The only real drawbacks of this title, although not detracting too much from the overall experience, would probably be just how deep and meaningful most of the lyrics are. To some, it might hit a bit too close to home i suppose, and certainly did for me at times. But after looking (or listening maybe) beyond how emphatically the band put forward, in a remarkably sensitive manner, their views on love, and the human experience in general, I found that I really began to understand where they were coming from.
Go on, Let love in.
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Dec 10th, 2006
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