Word: martsch
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...their last and disappointingly lackluster album, “Ancient Melodies of the Future,” Northwestern guitar rockers Built to Spill have approached a comeback with “You In Reverse,” their latest release. Formed in 1992 by prodigious guitarist and singer Doug Martsch, Built to Spill’s deeply melodic, spiraling rock compositions were so well-received as to make the band one of the most popular indie rock acts in the 90’s. The group gained prominence throughout the decade, peaking with 1999’s stellar...
...After receiving reams of critical praise and attracting a load of religious followers, Martsch finally took the plunge with a major label. The collective whining of indie rock fans across the globe could be heard as the ink dried on the contract and yet another artist began the inevitable process of "selling...
...least that's how the story should go. Instead, Martsch decided that now would be the right time to create his White Album. The aptly titled Perfect From Now On left a lot of people (including the executives at his label) scratching their heads. With only one song under five minutes and most pushing eight, the album took an epic stab at capturing eternity in a few moments of sound...
...what Built to Spill's most recent release, Keep It Like a Secret would bring to the table. Keeping in character, this album turned out to be the one everyone should have been expecting. A combination of the pop of There's Nothing Wrong and the grandeur of Perfect, Martsch's latest manifesto of sound smoothes the edges but loses none of its weight...
...Live, the band veers from one violently brilliant extreme to another. Some shows tumble into unbelievable 30-minute long jams on b-sides of singles released five years ago. Others are made up of drop-dead perfect sonic recreations of the album, filled out with the intensity of Martsch flailing at his guitar before your eyes. Then again, Martsch has probably completely rewritten the Built to Spill playbook by now, just to keep us critics on our toes. The only way to find out for sure? Check it out yourself...