Why Should The Fire Die? Pt. 2

Stumptown-The coffee song. It was named after a coffee shop in Portland. It is the most traditional song on the album. It is almost more tradtional than even their first album. It sticks out on this very very non-bluegrass album. Since it is short and sweet and fun, it is kind of a pallete cleanser on this very dark, intense album. Thought it is not my favorite song on the album, I have to love it because it is about coffee.

Anthony-Sara's Song! This song is another favorite...big favorite. It has this great 1940's feel to it. Sara wrote a great song and also sings it very well. Sara's singing voice has matured over the years and she sounds less breathy...more grown up. It is almost sultry in some places. This is a very simple song and fun song that has a hint of pyscho in it...but in a fun way. I love the uke, I love the way Sara sings it, and I love to sing it myself. I never really thought that I would tell a difference in the way they recorded this album from the last one, but I really can...especially on this song. The way Sara's soft voice and uke come through on one speaker and then is slowly joined by the rest of the group in the other speaker is so neat. I love to listen to that on headphones. This song's only downside is that it is so short!

Best of Luck-If there was one song on the album that I had to say was the biggest depature for the group it would be this one. This does not sound like Nickel Creek at all. The beginning of it sounds more like something you would hear on the radio than it does Nickel Creek. My jaw literaly dropped when I heard this song start. The rest of the song sounds a little more Nickel Creek, but it is still different. Sara's voice sounds different. It is like she is spitting the words out. I like it though. It is almost like when she sings "Drone" during the Fox. I think one of the reasons this album sounds so different is because of how the band is singing with each other. The lead dominates most of the song and the harmony vocals are really faint in some places. Most songs out there are like that and that is why I think it sounds mainstream. NC usually sings lead and harmony vocals at almost the same level so you can really hear the blending of the voices. You get that on some songs, but not on ones like this. This might be considered this album's "Spit on a Stranger." I remember hating Spit on a Stranger because it was so different. But now I love it. I guess it just grows on you. The songs I hate the first time I hear are usually the ones I end up loving the most.

Doubting Thomas-The decieving complex song. The first time I heard this at a concert a while back I feel in love with it and searched high and low for a bootleg copy on the internet. I have so much to say about this song because it means a lot to me as I think it does to a lot of people because of the subject matter. This is the new Reason's Why (although Reason's Why will alway be my favorite Nickel Creek song ever) The music is so soft and comforting, it is almost deceivingly comfortable because the lyrics are so deep. There are so many layers to it. But the biggest problem with this song is that they changed my favorite line. The end of the live version went along with the comforting music: "I'm a doubting thomas, you kept your promise, you always kept me safe. Oh me of little faith." I would listen to this song and it would let me knwo that no matter what happened, God always keeps his promises and he has always kept me safe. It made me feel good. The album version ended with" I'm a doubting thomas, i'll take your promise, though I know nothing is safe." That is a little less comforting and more cynical, just like the rest of the album. It makes the song more complex and more questioning. I perfer the live version, but the album version is more crisp and clear. Which is odd since nothing on the album is crisp and clear because of the recording. Doubting Thomas sounds like it should be on the This Side with the way it is recorded. But Chris's voice continues to amaze me on this song. I hate that he dominates the majority of the album (his voice and hands are all over it) but I guess he does have an amazing voice so I don't mind as much...I do wish Sean would sing more...but I guess that I will have to wait until his new solo comes out.

First and Last Waltz-A very haunting and mysterious song. You really have to listen to make out individual instruments. They all blend together really well on this. I am not really sure what the sound is at the end of the song. I hear that in between a lot of the songs. I am not sure what it is. A good song, but not a favorite. Not yet anyways. All of their songs end up being a favorite after awhile.

Helena-I love the way this song starts. Chris said that the eighth notes at the beginning of this song started out as Itziny (an instrumental that they all love to play) the producer didn't like it so they created Helena. This is one of the best songs on the album. It is one of the most overtly complex (When In Rome gets that title) but is sung in such a way that you know the speaker is working out issues with this song. There is no simple answer to what this song is about. It starts and ends in two totally different places...which can be said about a lot of the songs on the album. It the kind of intense song that I take an instant liking to the moment I hear it. I always like things sung with a lot of passion. If you have that much passion about something it must be good or atleast can't be ignored. Chris has said that he wrote a lot of these songs theorically, but after his marriage ended, he ended up singing them with more emotion that he wrote it. That is what makes this song so good. What makes the album as a whole so good. The trio has grown up a lot between albums. They have been through a lot and this album is just a way for them to try and document and make sense of it all. The maturity shows and the album is better and more complex for it. It gives it layers. Helena puts this maturity and life experience to the best use. Not only is the music played with intensity, but Chris's voice is so powerful. And then there is the end...the drum...that was so odd to hear that on one of their albums. It really gave that song a punch. It was like the song got so intense that just the simple instruments couldn't portray anymore intensity. It is where the song opens up and you kind of feel a release. The ending is cool, but SOOOO DIFFERENT! But I like it. Again, the songs that shock me usually end up being my favorite.

Why Should the Fire Die?-Another decieving complex song. The music is so soft and comforting like something you would play before you went to sleep around a campfire, but the lyrics, the story behind the song...wow. Going into the album, this was my favorite song. And it is still very close to my heart. Though the story behind it and the end of the song aludes to the end of a relationship (Chris's divorce), I like to think of it as a song about the way relationships really are. They are hard and complex and not like you would see in the movies. It is about being there for each other and not being selfish and sticking it out to the end. Staying with each other in sickness and in health, for better or for worse. Those aren't just words, they have a whole lot of meaning behind them. This is a song about trying to make a relationship work even when it is impossible about being happy just being together even if it kills. Even if it is rough, you are together. I love the line: "saying I won't figure you out. It might be true, but let me try and try and try for the rest of my life." Guys can't ever figure out girls...because girls can barely figure themselves out! That is a problem in a lot relationships. It is just part of the complexity of them...which is what I hate. I like things in one nice neat package. So in one view this song is a very good real love song, but knowing that Chris's marriage ends gives it a whole new light. It makes me cry.

So that is it...finally...my views of this album. As I said, it is different, more different that I had thought, but it is amazing.