CD Odyssey Disc 189: Pete Yorn

I had intended to do this review right after I watched Monday Night Football. However the second half debacle I just witnessed was so total I needed about an hour just to calm down to the point that I could think about music (yeah we lost - and lost big)

So I took some time to cool off by watching the latest episode of Dexter (which frankly was less of a bloodbath than the Patriots/Dolphins game that preceded it). I think I am now prepared to face the music.

Disc 189 is...Day I Forgot
Artist: Pete Yorn

Year of Release: 2003

What’s Up With The Cover?: It's a picture of Pete in an unknown but apparently urban location. I think we can all agree, Pete Yorn has a pretty awesome head of hair.

On a much lesser note, this cover reminds me how much I'd like to get a jean jacket to round out my wardrobe. Somehow I doubt I'll wear it as well as Pete.

How I Came To Know It: I first heard of Pete Yorn when his album "musicforthemorningafter" came out back in 2001. It received big critical hype, but I never bought it. He actually came into our house when Sheila read a music review of 'best music of the oughts' and "musicforthemorningafter" was mentioned. She bought that album first, but that's the subject of a future review. This is the follow up effort that she brought home shortly thereafter.

How It Stacks Up: Of the two Pete Yorn albums we own (if you've been reading along, you'll know which ones), I like the other one better, but this one is OK.

Rating: 2 stars but almost 3.

We've only had this album for a very brief period of time, and I don't put it on a lot, so I wouldn't say I have a strong association with it. I think its biggest fault is that it suffers by comparison with the album that preceded it.

After a slightly self-indulgent 47 second 'intro' track, "Day I Forgot" settles into some quality alt-pop. The first couple of tracks, "Come Back Home" and "Crystal Village" are two of the better songs on the record, and overall the front end of the album is better than the back end.

At fourteen, this record is pushing what is acceptable in my mind for song total, but since they are all between two and a half and four and half minutes, I forgive Pete his slight unwillingness to edit. That said, I could make a couple of cuts and make a much tighter record in the process.

The music is a little too radio friendly. That isn't to say that I oppose it simply because it is radio friendly (although I often have to fight that impulse). Rather it has that generic quality in places that I tend to associate with the radio.

On a few later tracks, Yorn's voice strays dangerously close to a derivative of Pearl Jam songs from the same period. Sounding like Eddie Vedder is never a good idea, because you'll always suffer in the comparison.

This quality shows up much more strongly later in the album on tracks like "Burrito" and "Man In Uniform". On "Burrito" it didn't bother me, since I didn't like that track anyway, but it disappointed me on "Man In Uniform" where it detracts from what could've been a good song.

When Yorn let's up just a little bit on the vocal throttle, and edges back to his own sound, he has a great tone all his own; a rock voice that makes you want to hear what he has to say. I enjoyed "All At Once" which gives this album a nice lift right at the end, and makes up for a few fairly forgettable songs that come before it.

As for lyrics, I don't think Yorn is brilliant on this album, but he is at least thoughtful, which is more than most people you're going to hear on the radio.

In the final analysis, "Day I Forgot" is still a solid record, although it didn't grab me like Yorn's earlier album, and didn't inspire me to keep drilling through his collection. Still you could do worse, and you can't deny the dude has a fine head of hair.

Best tracks: Come Back Home, Crystal Village, All At Once.