Jars of Clay - Good Monsters

Hoosey Rating: 7/10

Well, I don't know if I would say I lied, but in hindsight, I didn't exactly update right away as you can see from the comparison between the date of the previous entry and the date of this entry. Oh well, I doubt that you are devestated.

I'm forcing myself to write about something here, so I thought a CD would be a good place to start. Before I get started though, I'll explain my rating system. The highest rating I'll give a new CD is an 8. It can't get any higher than that until I've had the CD for a year. When I think back to all the CDs I loved for the first month or so, you get into some embarrassing territory (I'm thinking tobyMac here, but no offense I guess). If I'm still listening to a CD on a regular basis after a year, there is a good chance that it has worked its way up to the top shelf or two of the CD tower (homemade woodstained CD tower, btw). Also, I didn't like Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits or Danielson's Ships too much for the first month I had them. All that to say that for me a 7/10 rating means I love the album. What can I say, I'm still waiting for that perfect 10.

I've been listening to Jars of Clay ever since a year or so after their debut album back in 95 (the midst of my Jesus Freak period). It seems like every time they come out with a new album I wait a few months before I buy it, and then I like it a lot (I corrected that for you Sarah) and listen to it darn near exclusively for a week or two. After I liked Who We Are Instead so much, I decided to buy their next album the day it came out (not sure Redemption Songs counts, though I liked it a lot too). Plus, I heard that this was going to be their first "rock" album (sound familiar U2 fans?) and they had a new bass player and drummer. I liked the singles I heard on myspace, although I made a point this time to not overplay them before the album came out. I really don't like it when I wear out a song months before I get to hear the whole album. It's just not cool when I have to skip track 1. I must have heard Vertigo 40 times before I ever heard Miracle Drug.

Despite my optimism, I didn't really expect to like Good Monsters this much. This was supposed to be the year of the "Independent Artist" for me. Let's just say it doesn't help your indie-cred too much when you love an album you bought at a Christian bookstore from a band that was last "cool" in the mid 90s. I guess that although I now wear kinda funky glasses and hang out in coffee shops I'm still on the outside of the "indie" circle. I think I'm probably better off this way anyway though; I don't let ClearChannel or The Underground tell me what to listen to... just relevantmagazine.com.

But enough of this talk, lets get to the album:

1. Work -- A sweet simple guitar riff opens the album, followed by very cool drums, which then leads to an organ, building up to the vocals. I like the words "all the demons look like prophets, and I'm living out every word they speak" and "I have no fear of drowning, it's the breathing that's taking all this work". My favorite part of the song though is the line that is sung at least two dozen times: "Do you know...what I mean...when I say...I don't want to be alone?" It starts off weary and breathless and by the end of the song he is practically screaming "I DON'T WANT TO BE ALONE!" Check out the video for this one, I like it a lot. It is a very simple concept but it works beautifully and is very cool.

2. Dead Man (Carry Me) -- This song is another song that is a bit different for Jars. The verse is moving along steadily when all of the sudden the chorus crashes in and screams "Carry me! I'm just a dead man, lying on the carpet, can't find a heartbeat. Make me free! I want to be the new man, tired of the old one, out with the old plan." I like how this song works because the verse lulls you into a false sense of security and the chorus blasts that complacency with a shot of urgency. It works well because the song is pretty much about getting complacent. I love it when the music and the words are meant for each other instead of sounding like an arranged marriage.

*I should probably point out here that I may be making Jars sound a little harder than they are. I mean, they are still Jars of Clay, they did not undergo a transformation into Pantera or anything.

3. All My Tears -- This song was written by Julie Miller. Apparently Buddy and Julie Miller have been making country music for the last decade plus. Good country music. Before I heard Johhny Cash, I would've told you my previous sentence was a oxymoron. After hearing this song and some snippets from their albums on iTunes, I'm very interested in checking them out some more. Jars makes the song their own and I especially like the piano. The chorus is really good: "It don't matter where you bury me. I'll be home and I'll be free. It don't matter where I lay. All my tears be washed away." I love that kind of talk Mister.

4. Even Angels Cry -- Now I'm not entirely sure of the theological implications of this title, but I think its pretty awesome. This one slows things down a bit with some sweet banjo picking and female background vocals (henceforth BGVs). Jars introduced me to the magic of the banjo years before I ever heard of Sufjan Stevens, and it is featured nicely in this song. There are a few lyrics I especially appreciated: "Oh sister, if you wake up in the night, walls are falling letting in the light. No need to worry, baby even angels cry." and "I saw a woman with ribbons in her hair. Old and lonely, so beautiful I had to stop and stare." I really like lyrics like this that shine a light on the beauty of minute details

5.There Is a River -- This song is a little bit of a hiccup for me. The accapella intro just sounds wrong for some reason, even though I normally like that kind of thing. Something about the way the words and music fit together seem a little off too (although I'm not calling it one of those arranged marriages). I still like the song OK, I don't skip it, but I don't skip to it either. If it were a lesser album this could possibly even be a standout track.

6. Good Monsters -- I like the idea of this song: the quote by Edmund Burke that "all that is required for evil to prevail is for good men to do nothing". Although I'm not sure I would've gotten that idea just from listening to the song. It's a bit wordy too in the chorus "Not all monsters are bad but the ones that are good never do what they could, never do what they could" Now that I read that line the point of the song is pretty obvious, but nevertheless I'm not sure I would have caught on without reading the quote attached to it in the liner notes. Also the music video soured me on this one a little bit. The part with the band is really cool where they are in a bright white room and all of their instruments are painted white, while they are all wearing black suits. For the verse Dan Haseltine (the lead singer) has eyeballs painted on his eyelids and when he gets to the line "Do you know who you are?" he opens them. However, the rest of the video is a little kid chasing grown men in furry costumes around a grassy field and that just about ruined it for me. Again, still a good song and musically pretty rocking, but not my favorite.

7.Oh My God -- Have you ever heard Worlds Apart? Well this is the 00s version, and that is not a slight in the least. It is six minutes of questioning God and questioning our own motivations. I've heard this song a couple dozen times and I'm still processing it. I won't bother quoting it here, but I encourage you to check it out, definitely an album highlight.

8.Surprise -- I like this song a lot too. Very bass and drums heavy, laid back and contemplative. I like the line "We are so beautiful when we sleep". There are plenty of puns I can make with the title, so I'll just say it was a pleasant one.

9.Take Me Higher -- I consider this the lowpoint of the album and the song I sometimes skip. I've given it a chance a few times but I'm still not a big fan. The chorus just sounds really cliche: "Take me higher than the sun, yeah you are the only one." That's the whole chorus. They just say that a few times. While the one line chorus worked really well in "Work", this one just comes off as lame.

10. Mirrors and Smoke -- I was really excited when I read that Leigh Nash sings on this song. It was really tempting to skip Track 9 so I could hear this song, but I resisted. It works really well. I've heard people compare this to a Johnny Cash/June Carter style duet, and I guess that's almost true. I just can't say enough about Leigh Nash's voice, it is the barometer against which I measure all female vocalists. Something about the frailty that comes through her voice gets me. This is a love song about the everyday side of love: "Loves a constant mission, truer words were never spoke. Your love, it keeps me wishin, my heart, it keeps me broke." It's a little weird for me to listen to this song knowing that the two singers have been happily married to other people for a decade, though.

This is a fan video that is actually awesome. It has Superman singing Dan's part and Leigh as Wonderwoman.

11.Light Gives Heat -- This may be my favorite song of the album. I love love the African choir and how they weave in and out of the chorus. The message of the song is cool too about "heroes from the West, we don't know you, we know best." For me the song is about the fact that often missionaries are the one's being ministered too. As good as it is, I'm convinced it gets better with each listen. I heard them play this live though without the choir and I didn't like it nearly as much.

12. Under the Bridge -- This is another love song. I like that Jars isn't afraid to be sentimental at times, but this song again demonstrates the true nature of love: giving yourself up for your spouse and being willing to lose (this is all second hand information of course). "Maybe we can stay till the last drop of water flows under the bridge"

So, basically, this is a great album. I also like the Cover art and the booklet, which is always a plus in my book. I recommend this album to indie and Top 40 alike. If you like music I think it has something for you.