Taking sides! Face the Truth vs. Tanglewood Numbers.

Whheeew. Tough one.

I will go with FTT, because it rekindled my faith in Malkmus (whereas I don't think that anyone doubted Berman had something like Tanglewood Numbers in him).

While I think FTT will grow on me more and more over time (like Pig Lib), TangNumb will probably always be the SJews album I listen to the most. Malk's guitar lines on TangNumb are great, but I just don't think the SJews excell at that style of songwriting. Berman is still an unimpeachable lyricist. All the Xanex and crack in the world won't change that.

Weird, I thought this thread would be blazing with invective by now. Instead, it's been pretty much crickets...

The last SJews record I enjoyed was American Water. Don't have the patience to wade through whatever kind of production he has going on now, I just want the lyrics and the guitar.

Dude, it's not like he's writing 8 minute instrumental suites now.

"The last SJews record I enjoyed was American Water. Don't have the patience to wade through whatever kind of production he has going on now, I just want the lyrics and the guitar."

Patience to wade through the production? Why do people create all these non-reasons for what essentially boils down to:

I have dismissed this artist because it is easier for me that way. Consuming all of this music has exhausted me. I just have too much stuff on my ipod and it's getting overwhelming.

That's what I think you really mean. If you could summon the patience from some dark depth within you I think you'd find the production is very much complementary to the words on this album. People build empires, cure disease, and win the hearts of the unfuckable everyday. Surely, you can find some patience!

(not meant to be mean spirited in this post)

Right now, Face The Truth wins this fight handily.

Tanglewood’s lyrics just ain’t up to the usual standard I’ve come to expect from Berman – or maybe their force hasn’t hit me yet? – because otherwise this would be a harder question to answer. Maybe I’ll feel differently in a year, though.

In other words, SM = Top 5 of 2005, SJ = Top 20 or 2005

I should note that I’m FLOORED by the lush over-instrumentation of Tanglewood, though.

balkan white out, to a certain extent you're right, it's easier than ever before to get ahold of a vast amount of music, more than one could ever hope to find the time to listen to -- so for me at least, if a certain record doesn't grab me on 1st or 2nd listen, I'll put it by wayside and move on. I love music, and I'm going to try to experience as much of it as I can. 'American Water' has that great hook at the very beginning, -In 1982, I was hospitalized for approaching perfection.- That's what got me then, in a way that this album just doesn't.

isn't it 1984?

1984.

Randy Travis, on the other hand, couldn't get enough of 1982.

but but but the first line on this album is :

"Where's the paper bag that holds the liquor / just in case I feel the need to puke"

It's such a wonderful polar opposite of the opener of AW. Each line sets up the mood of each album perfectly.

Face the Truth is alright because it has "Mama" on it and I understand that Stephen Malkmus sort of apologizes in a very covert manner for being such a sarcastic twit for so many years (which is totally hilarious in a I almost feel sorry for the guy kind of way).

But Tangledwood Numerals is a superior recording to me just because I like a Berman more than a Malkmus. Malkmus looks into a lot of mirrors behind of the scenes of Truth, and this time for the purposes of serious self-evaluation and not for admiring his devastatingly handsome facial structure. And that's cool and everything, but I just prefer the way Berman looks at his in the dive bar bathroom after a long night of plugging toxins into his essence, and can't stand himself so much to the point that he has to clench his fist and strike at the mirror with a barn brawl rage, shattering the thing into spiderwebbed cracks ala comb-overed John Malkovich near the end of Being John Malkovich (which was also better than Face the Truth despite "Baby C'mon" being pretty good too).