Singles Mixer #5: "Just Make It Stop" by Low

You see I'm close to the edge, I'm at the end of my rope...

Hello again, music fans!  Welcome to Singles Mixer #5!

For those of you unfamiliar with the Singles Mixer columns, here's the scoop.  Whenever we find new singles from Minnesota bands we task one of our regular contributors with reviewing them.  As is Newest Industry policy, all singles are given a score of 1-5 (whereas albums are rated 1-10).

This time around we asked TCDroogsma to give us his thoughts on Low's new single "Just Make It Stop" from their upcoming album The Invisible Way.

TCDroogsy, thoughts?

How you feel about “Just Make It Stop” likely depends on how you feel about the recipe that Low has perfected over 20 years.

There are typically three things that define Low:

01. Instrumentation that makes as much use of the empty space as it does of the instruments.

02. Alan Sparhawk's distinctive, fragile vocals (often times complimented by Mimi Parker).

03. Lyrics that are somehow universal & personal, allowing the listener to find themselves in nearly every song.

“Just Make It Stop” only hits on one of these three ingredients. Lyrically, this song fits nicely into the Sparhawk/Parker canon. The lyrics are vague enough, with many of the couplets addressed to the “you” that always seems to be saying and doing things to fuck with people. Hell, even the titular “it” is never really addressed. The world? Time? The omnipotent, overbearing “you” (or, maybe, “them?”).

Regardless, when you sign up for the music of Low you sign up for that sort of lyrical content. There's something to be said for a band that can write songs that everybody can relate to in their own way.

Now, on to those other two ingredients.

I fully realize that Alan Sparhawk is not the “lead singer” of Low in the traditional sense. Still, when releasing the first single from a new album, it's a bold move to shelve the singer who is, to the casual fan, the voice of the band. I'm not complaining here, it's just a surprising left turn. I think Parker has a great voice and absolutely carries the song. Whether it's years of sharing the microphone with Sparhawk or my inability to separate new Low songs from my expectations, Parker manages the same aggressive fragility as her sometimes co-singer.

Which brings us to the instrumentation.

What's the one thing that casual indie rock fans know about Low? That they're slow and quiet. Obviously “Just Make It Stop” is neither of those things. It's actually a pretty rollicking affair considering who's playing the instruments.

Much has been made about the fact that The Invisible Way was produced by Jeff Tweedy. Admittedly, I didn't put a whole lot of stock into his involvement (though, as a Wilco & Low fan it did breed some curiosity). I was hoping that the lessons learned about spacing and silence during A Ghost Is Born and Summer Teeth would translate to “Low with a Wilco twist.” Rather, if this single is any example, we're being treated to “Low plays Wilco.” Rather than an experiment in organic, live silence (I feel so pretentious just typing that), “Just Make It Stop” has much more in common with the country-tinged feel of Being There.

I realize that this all makes me sound like a curmudgeon who wants his Low to sound like Low. There's a grain of truth to that, as I really do love the band's work. More accurately, I'm a bit disappointed that rather than pushing toward the sound explored on Drums & Guns (a masterpiece in my book), Low seems to be pushing toward sounding like everybody else. For a band that spent twenty years carving out a niche that was theirs and theirs alone, “Just Make It Stop” sounds more like compromise than evolution.

Final Score – 2.5/5

There you have it, folks!  TCDroogsma puts Low's new single "Just Make It Stop" square in the middle of the rankings.

For more information on Low's new album The Invisible Way and their upcoming tour, be sure to visit their website here.  They can also be found on Twitter (@LowTheBand).

For more TCDroogsma, be sure to give him a follow on Twitter (@TCDroogsma). He can also be found here on Newest Industry hosting our weekly podcast Flatbasset Radio.  Be sure to tune in each week, as winter's slowly causing him to lose his mind.

Of course Newest Industry also has a home on Twitter (@NewestIndustry1).  Give us a follow to stay up on the work being done by all of our contributors.  More importantly, we have a Facebook page here.  Stopping by and giving us a "Like" is a free and highly effective way to support the blog. 

Sounds Of Sota #2: "Plays Nice Places" by Low

"All you guys out there gonna wish you were Al Green..."

Hello again, music fans! Welcome to Sounds Of Sota #2!

For those who are unfamiliar with Sounds Of Sota, it's a running column in which we ask one of our contributors to review new albums & EP's from Minnesota artists. In sticking with our desire to rank and rate everything the albums are given a score of 1-10 at the end of the column.

This time around we asked TCDroogsma to give us his thoughts on Minnesota institution Low's new live EP “Plays Nice Places.”

TCDroogsma, thoughts?

When I first heard about Plays Nice Places I was intrigued for two reasons.

First, for nearly 20 years Low has perfected the art of getting just as much out of silence as they have out of sound. I was curious to see how that would translate to a live album. Would the crowd appreciate the silence with reverence or would the constant hum of a live album threaten the balance upon which the songs are built?

Second (and more personally), I've seen Low twice. The first time was an absolutely transcendent performance opening for Wilco on the banks of Lake Superior. Despite the presence of rain and temps that couldn't have been above 60, that show made me a Low fan for life. The second time I saw them was at the Mainroom as part of a packed bill for a Radio K benefit. Honestly, I could barely keep my eyes open during the set.

Now, what I've come to realize about both of those shows is that the band's performance likely wasn't dramatically different and that my experience at each one was driven almost entirely by surroundings and circumstance. With that in mind, Plays Nice Places had the potential to settle (at least in my mind) just what kind of live entity Low really is.

What we get with Plays Nice Places is a band at the peak of their powers, for better or worse.

Opening with the classic “Words,” Plays Nice Places starts on its highest note. Now, I'll be the first to admit that I've built something of a cottage industry in our Songs Of The Week column by taking shots at Ben Gibbard. Here, however, his voice provides a warmth that is almost non-existent in Alan Sparhawk & Mimi Parker's song-to-song existence. Despite the presence of some insufferable giggling, Gibbard's cameo gives the album some sorely needed color. It's just a shame that, as the opener, you don't realize just what a treat his presence turns out to be.

The rest of Plays Nice Places is certainly enjoyable (if risk-averse). While it's hard to believe that a band with the longevity of Low could be distilled to six songs, they manage to pull it off by pulling the 6 songs from 5 albums ("Waiting" stands as the only new track on the EP). Sadly, the songs, while very good in their own right, are rarely the highlight's from their parent albums. This EP is just dying for an elongated, fuzzed-out version of “Broadway” or perhaps a more fragile take on something like “Dust On The Window.”

Still, a sheen of professionalism hangs over the proceedings. With the exception of a joke introducing Gibbard and a brief introduction to “Murderer,” we're given precious little personality from the band. Whether it's the aforementioned reverence or editing, there is almost no existence of crowd noise during the songs. The band's harmonies are more calculated than inviting, and Sparhawk's singing stays between the lines so consistently that it's jarring to hear him channel a bit of Westerberg for a sneer at the end of “Witches.”

Depending on your expectations of Plays Nice Places, it's either an enjoyable (if somewhat disposable) portrait of a band (if you're one of the converted) or “...another Low record, eh?” (if you're not). Frankly, with 19 years in the bank, most people have formed an opinion of Low already.

Still, it would be foolish to complain about a free, live EP. As an unabashed fan of the band, I'm certainly thankful that this document exists. To the uninitiated, it's unlikely to be the skeleton key to fandom (The Great Destroyer is still their most important album from that perspective), but in an indie-rock world that currently celebrates a genre-hopping, bigger is better, more is not enough attitude, it's good to remember that Low, whether live or on record, commands a niche that belongs only to them.

Final Score: 7/10

There you have it, everybody. The new Low EP reviewed by a Low fan. As mentioned, “Plays New Places” is free. Click here to visit Low's page to download the album for yourself (right-hand side of the page).

For more TCDroogsma he can be found on Twitter (@TCDroogsma). He also maintains a personal blog Flatbasset and hosts Newest Industry's weekly Flatbasset podcast. And no, he's never adequately explained to us what “Flatbasset” means.

Newest Industry also has a home on Twitter (@NewestIndustry1) which you can follow to stay up on the work being done by all of our contributors. More importantly, we have a Facebook page here. Trivial as it may seem, stopping by and giving us a “Like” is a valuable way to support the blog. And it's free. Stop by, eh?