A friend of mine today gave me a copy of The Elected's upcoming album, "Sun, Sun, Sun", to be released January 24th. It is awesome and below I've reviewed all the tracks on the album, because honestly, everyone needs to understand how awesome it is. Please, please, please go out and by this album. The band is good people and needs your support. Their first album was "Me First" (2004) and is probably on my top 25 list of best albums of all time. This is on there to. With no further ado, I give you, my review:
The Elected – Sun, Sun, Sun (47:42)
2006, Sub Pop Records
Review by Alexander Conner
Track 1 – “Clouds Parting (8:14 a.m.)” (0:44)
Best Line: “Though my lift is gone, my voice is strong.”
"Clouds Parting" is a wonderfully beautiful opening track for this new (and what I believe will no doubt be highly acclaimed) album by The Elected. Along with the final track, “At Home (Time Unknown)”, it weaves a simple but beautifully uplifting sentiment throughout the entire album. It is fulfilling and well mastered with a sense of hope and fulfillment that sends shivers down the spine and acts as a theme throughout the rest of the album.
Track 2 – “Would You Come With Me?” (2:50)
Best Line: “I didn’t get what I want, so I just took what wanted me.”
The slide guitar style used throughout this piece harkens back to The Elected’s first album, Me First. It is nice to see that while The Elected has progressed musically a lot throughout this album, they have not forgotten the roots from which they came. This track details the wish/need for companionship and how situations sometimes allow themselves to dictate a reaction, positive or negative depending on your interpretation of Blake’s purposeful lyrical ambiguity.
Track 3 – “Fireflies in a Steel Mill” (4:01)
Best Line: “It was hard, when I told her, those ideas that never get finished, well that’s what we are.”
There are not enough good things that can be said about this track. I would consider it a highlight of the album. It is a completely un-sappy but utterly romantic portrayal of the hardships of a relationship. The style changes quite often for a track of such time, and while this can be seem disconcerting and a testament to an undefined sense of self in other pieces of music, it is remarkably apt to the subject matter and fits the song perfectly. Those who enjoyed “A Time for Emily” on Me First will be happy to know that this song is a continuance of the story line somewhat, and offers the listener greater insight into Blake’s personal interpretation of what a relationship can and does mean. The title in itself is a beautiful analogy and it’s meaning (as told by Blake) can be seen here in an interview done by The Midnight Hurrah’s contributor Laura Cushing.
Track 4 – “Not Going Home” (4:45)
Best Line: “Sometimes you can’t go home; Sometimes you’re already there.”
I was slightly disappointed about the substance and placement of this track. While I would have to say it is the weakest track on the album, I think that this is emphasized by the fact that it follows probably one of the most powerful. The theme seems all too common as well. What is home? Where is home? What does a home symbolize? While the up-tempo music surrounding the lyrics is a departure from what listeners are used to, it is without a doubt the saving grace of this song. The sentiment of the lyrics is good, but it seems just slightly cliché in this setting. It almost feels as if it wasn’t written from the heart as much, or that whatever Blake really felt, he just wasn’t able to put into words. While this is not condemnable by death, it is a slight let down.
Track 5 – “It Was Love” (3:35)
Best Line: “And you, I just put up with you. Could I stay, ‘cause you wouldn’t leave.”
I usually dismiss a song of this size when it repeats the word “love” sixteen times, but for some reason this track doesn’t feel like it’s been overdone in any way. It feels like a portrayal of the actual emotion of love, something that I’m not sure I’ve heard any other group do as well before. My only contention would be that the vocals could have been turned up a bit while it was being mixed, as some of the earlier lyrics are almost indistinguishable even when tossed through an equalizer’s Vocal Boost setting. This track really feels whole and the lead guitar is wonderfully played.
Track 6 – “Sun, Sun, Sun” (3:13)
Best Line: “And I hated being the fucking patient, So you waited, you waited, you waited, But I never, ever came to.”
This track is the best on the album bar-none. It is easy to see why The Elected chose it as their album title, as it seethes emotion and understanding. The music is so perfectly adapted to the lyrics that it is hard to imagine that they were ever two separate entities. I envision the lyrics will become instant AIM “profilisms” for many fans. This track really portrays how far Blake’s voice has progressed from Me First as far as being able to convey meaning and his own personality.
Track 7 – “Did Me Good” (4:10)
Best Line: “And we’ll stay up until we see the sun and do us some good.”
“Oh snap! He did not!” “Oh yeah… he did”. That is the first thing that comes to mind when listening to this ambiguously titled track. It’s definitely the most unlike The Elected’s usual style and really shows how far the entire band has come. The keyboard, which has an organ setting applied, gives the whole track a funky and oh-so-fresh feeling. It makes you want to run around in your underwear screaming the chorus lines at that lost love you who is still situated squarely in the back of your mind. It makes you want redemption, sin, and a silly grin all at the same time. This track is a real surprise, and I believe most for most first timers it will show the dexterity in music styles that the band is able to produce. They’re really branching out in this one… in a great way.
Track 8 – “The Bank and Trust” (3:15)
Best Line: “We’re just as bad as we ever were, ever were. Selling out, to the bank and trust.”
Another up-tempo number, “The Bank and Trust” is extremely reminiscent (in reference to the sliding guitar part) of a lot of the early Elected songs. It has a nice state of mind to it, but seems to be a little shaky in parts. It tells the story of a guy (Blake? Heh…) in a relationship and a place in time that just isn’t what he wants. It is obvious that this time his heart is in the song, but there is something indescribable that just doesn’t feel right. It is by no means a poor track or unfitting of this album, there is just some aspect that seems incomplete which I am unable to put my finger on.
Track 9 – “Old Times” (3:43)
Best Line: “And I’m sorry [Babe, so sorry], I didn’t call you back. And when I finally called, I’m sorry for that.”
When this song started playing I had to make sure that I hadn’t accidentally started a classic John Prine or Jackson Browne track. However, I was correct in my song choice and the folksy “twanginess” that this song has is sweetly reminiscent (almost like a tribute) to the musical styles from which the band was drawing. The style fits the emotion of the track extremely well and gives a soul-baring aspect to the lyrics. The latter are punchy and exacting, saying what needs to be said with little hesitation or obstruction of conscience. I really feel like this track was written bleary eyed in some hotel room at 2am, with some sort of quiet satisfaction.
Track 10 – “Desiree” (2:52)
Best Line: “Well this is not a good sign, you don’t know when but you’re running out of time. And the life that you had in your heart, well it passed on before you fell apart.”
This track is a hauntingly warm portrayal of one life. There is a systematic delay of a couple milliseconds between the right and left channel, which at first may seem disconcerting, but seems to elicit such emotion after multiple listening sessions that it becomes haunting. The harmonica is used (and played) sublimely throughout the track and adds an older, yet still contemporary warmness to the lyrics. I am not sure who Desiree is, but I’d like to meet her and thank her for allowing me three minutes of insight into her life. “Wow” *sigh*, is really the only way to describe this song.
Track 11 – “I’ll Be Your Man” (4:22)
Best Line: “You don’t have to go and die, to show people you’re hurting. And you’re gonna have to try to put out the fire if you’re burning.”
Again Blake’s voice is showcased by beautiful music in this sweet, but not saccharine-like-sweet song of devotion. The lyrics are so well written that it is understandable the heavy weight and subject matter that they convey. There is nothing I despise more than a poorly written song of love, as it shows that the love was never there in the first place. However, “I’ll Be Your Man”, is so well written that it may become The Elected’s “romantic hit”.
Track 12 – “Beautiful Rainbow” (2:17)
Best Line: “I’d burn my old house down, I’d get tattooed. I’d do whatever I had to do.”
Beautiful Rainbow is what you will probably infer it as, an analogy for a person who one is attracted to, protected by, protective of, and in love with. While I originally thought it was a bit too sweet, it seems as the perfect complement for the previous track. However, it is by far not the best on this CD. Its placement is good, a little closer to the end, but it still is not the strongest song. Would it stand on it’s own as well? Probably not. Is it fine where it is and conveys what it is supposed to convey? Yes. What is it like? The first thing that popped into my mind was Lennon and Yoko when they were writing love songs to one another. Simple and sweet. If you take your cup of tea with three sugars, this may be your bag.
Track 13 – “Biggest Star” (7:17)
Best Line: “They’ll know me at the bank.”
After hearing this song all I want to do is “rock out with my cock out”. This will become the anthem of The Elected for quite a while. The horns, MY GOD THE HORNS!!! Everything in this song says, “We’ve made it. We know who we are. Shut the fuck up. We’re here to stay.” This track is absolutely amazing in it’s construction. It’s bluesy, it’s an exacting representation of the band many people have come to know and love. It’s pretty much the reason that everyone has to buy the album. Leave it until the end to listen to. Don’t skip forward! (No cheating…) Its place is perfect… the entire album builds up to it. Some might think a song entitled, “Biggest Star”, would have some air of narcissism to it, but no. There is absolutely no trace of that shit in this track. Utterly hopeful and a wonderful track.
Track 14 – “At Home (Time Unknown)” (0:41)
Best Line: “You’re the prettiest face I ever saw, this side of me.”
A perfect ending to an awesome album. I’m a sucker for a ukulele, so this musically light track brings some closure to the songs that came before it. At the end of this album you’ll want to sit back and light up a cig. I don’t fear I’m being too over-the-top by saying it’s an experience as good as sex. Enjoy.
Current Mood: 
emotionally... in a good way.
Current Music: The Elected - Desiree
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