Adam Pfleider
11/11/08, 07:11 PM
Right Away, Great Captain! - The Eventually Home
Record Label: Favorite Gentlemen Recordings
Release Date: November 11, 2008
It seems hard these days to tell who is being truthful in their lyrics, and who is stretching the truth to be ironically poetic. The late Elliott Smith is one of the last greats I can think of, and Kevin Devine has consistently gotten better over his continuous career. There is Dallas Green and Conor Oberst, but that's all that comes to mind as a small number of great storytellers.
While Andy Hull has more to worry about with his main project Manchester Orchestra, his life seems better reflected, and more poetic, with his side project Right Away, Great Captain!.
The first record, a "less than children's story," is a bundle of songs describing a voyage by Hull's character, the Captain (duh), out at sea. Rationally, that sea can be seen as Hull's consistent touring life since dropping out of high school to pursue music full time.
The Eventually Home is the return. Written between the time of what Hull describes as "300 days" of touring and before his new marriage, The Eventually Home is dark. Long story short, it is the thoughts that teeter back and forth from the Captain and his Wife. The Captain's intention is to come home, bitter from his voyage, to end his wife's life.
Again, like the last record, Hull switches things up musically. There are harmonic vocal choruses ("Devil Dressed in Blue"), folk rockers ("What a Pity"/"Oh No, I Tried"), and a full band roll tide ("I am a Vampire") before the album's close.
"Once Like You" also contains "the hardest lyrics" Hull has had to write. It is haunting, and sends a chill down the listeners throat when the Captain repeats "yeah" several times after proclaiming those said lyrics.
The album is a step up, and a bit shorter than its predecessor. Hull has stepped out behind an opaque glass to something a bit more transparent. "Cutting Off the Blood to Ten" and "Father Brian Finn" are somewhat forgettable, but the heart of the album isn't lost in them.
The Eventually Home is very dark in tone, and at times, uncomfortable in word. With that being said, it is an honest documentation made by an artist that seems to be few and far between these days, and one that is possibly coming into his own.
City and Colour's Bring Me Your Love; Kevin Devine's Put Your Ghost to Rest; Elliott Smith's From a Basement on the Hill
myspace.com/rightawaygreatcaptain (http://www.myspace.com/rightawaygreatcaptain)
Record Label: Favorite Gentlemen Recordings
Release Date: November 11, 2008
It seems hard these days to tell who is being truthful in their lyrics, and who is stretching the truth to be ironically poetic. The late Elliott Smith is one of the last greats I can think of, and Kevin Devine has consistently gotten better over his continuous career. There is Dallas Green and Conor Oberst, but that's all that comes to mind as a small number of great storytellers.
While Andy Hull has more to worry about with his main project Manchester Orchestra, his life seems better reflected, and more poetic, with his side project Right Away, Great Captain!.
The first record, a "less than children's story," is a bundle of songs describing a voyage by Hull's character, the Captain (duh), out at sea. Rationally, that sea can be seen as Hull's consistent touring life since dropping out of high school to pursue music full time.
The Eventually Home is the return. Written between the time of what Hull describes as "300 days" of touring and before his new marriage, The Eventually Home is dark. Long story short, it is the thoughts that teeter back and forth from the Captain and his Wife. The Captain's intention is to come home, bitter from his voyage, to end his wife's life.
Again, like the last record, Hull switches things up musically. There are harmonic vocal choruses ("Devil Dressed in Blue"), folk rockers ("What a Pity"/"Oh No, I Tried"), and a full band roll tide ("I am a Vampire") before the album's close.
"Once Like You" also contains "the hardest lyrics" Hull has had to write. It is haunting, and sends a chill down the listeners throat when the Captain repeats "yeah" several times after proclaiming those said lyrics.
The album is a step up, and a bit shorter than its predecessor. Hull has stepped out behind an opaque glass to something a bit more transparent. "Cutting Off the Blood to Ten" and "Father Brian Finn" are somewhat forgettable, but the heart of the album isn't lost in them.
The Eventually Home is very dark in tone, and at times, uncomfortable in word. With that being said, it is an honest documentation made by an artist that seems to be few and far between these days, and one that is possibly coming into his own.
City and Colour's Bring Me Your Love; Kevin Devine's Put Your Ghost to Rest; Elliott Smith's From a Basement on the Hill
myspace.com/rightawaygreatcaptain (http://www.myspace.com/rightawaygreatcaptain)