'Ello, mates. I thought it was time to share with you one of my two all-time favorite albums: The Everglow, by Mae. In some parts, words don't even do it justice, but I'll give it a shot anyways.

"The Everglow"-Mae



Artist: Mae
Release: 2005
Tracks: 15 (17 on special edition)
Length: 61:10 (73:19 on special edition)
Label: Tooth & Nail

Track Listing:

1. "Prologue" 1:16
2. "We're So Far Away" 3:50
3. "Someone Else's Arms" 5:09
4. "Suspension" 4:00
5. "This Is The Countdown" 3:57
6. "Painless" 4:20
7. "The Ocean" 4:41
8. "Breakdown" 4:14
9. "Mistakes We Knew We Were Making" 5:07
10. "Cover Me" 4:34
11. "The Everglow" 3:28
12. "Ready and Waiting to Fall" 4:21
13. "Anything" 4:03
14. "The Sun and the Moon" 7:16
15. "Epilogue" 0:54

Now, before I get into the meat of things, let me say one thing. If you really do end up taking my word (thanks if you do), don't purchase using iTunes. Track down the CD. You know, that circular, silvery-thing? Yeah. Find that. It will enhance the experience tenfold.

And so, let us being my review of "The Everglow".

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The Everglow really does fit the adjective "epic". No, not intrawebz-epic. Really, the word, "epic". It'll evoke emotions and thoughts, and perhaps give you a new appreciation of music in general. Yes, it's that powerful.

Mae stands for "Multi-sensory aesthetic experience." Now, if you don't know what aesthetic means, here you go:

1 a: of, relating to, or dealing with aesthetics or the beautiful <aesthetic theories> b: artistic <a work of aesthetic value> c: pleasing in appearance : attractive

Multi-sensory beautiful experience. That's a big thing to live up to. Luckily, The Everglow far surpasses the high standards set.

The first thing you'll notice about The Everglow is its presentation. The first track encourages you to open up the pamphlet that comes with the CD. See? I told you not to iTunes it.

The Everglow is what's called a "concept album". Its tracks tell a story, and The Everglow tells a pretty darn good story. The songs even have sounds and effects that branch over each track transition, so each song beautifully follows the previous. Each of the songs in the pamphlet have hand-drawn illustrations, and each fits the mood and atmosphere of the song exceedingly well. If I were you, I would open up the pamphlet and read along just as "Prologue" tells you to. It will totally change your perception of music.

The album opens up with "We're So Far Away", and gives you a feel of how Mae can slow things down and make you think about the lyrics. However, the next track, "Someone Else's Arms", blasts the album open and gets the story moving.


"Suspension"

The overall sound of The Everglow is very, very well done. It sounds clean, but not excessively (Mae's new album, Singularity, had a little trouble there). The editing is done very well, as is Dave Elkins' voice. He nails each word, and beautifully conveys the feelings and mood of the song. Each song is just bursting with individuality, and it shows.

The story builds and builds, peppered with different emotions ("Painless" is particularly emotional), and each song furthers the feelings the album is meant to provoke. "Breakdown" is a wonderful love song (yes, I said "love"), and "Cover Me" conveys a large sense of urgency. Each song is different and will give you something different to feel and hear. And it all explodes into a rush of beauty, that I call "The Everglow".

While all of the songs in The Everglow are great, the title track is especially fantastic. It's an uplifting, "just do it!" kind of song. It is an awesome song, and I can see why it's the title track.

Now just because "The Everglow" is the 11th track, doesn't mean tracks 12-15 suck. "Ready and Waiting to Fall" is another fantastic track (I don't even know why I say that, since all of the songs are fantastic). If you actually sat your butt down and read along just like "Prologue" told you to, you'd find that each song is a totally gratifying experience. With all of the factors considered, The Everglow makes it impossible for any of its songs to be worse than "awesome".

You're probably wondering if I have any criticism of The Everglow at all. To tell you the truth, I don't. The album is absolutely perfect. It doesn't need one tweak, one minor touch. When the whole idea of "read along with the album" idea comes together, it really makes The Everglow shine.

If you're going to purchase The Everglow, remember: don't iTunes it. And the best way to experience it is either through speakers or real headphones. Yes, the iPod earbuds look good, but their sound quality is crap (I can't believe I ever used them). Also, remember to set an hour aside to fully experience The Everglow! The sooner you're able to listen to The Everglow correctly, the better. Really. No other way gives it justice.

One of my friends, after my constant urging, bought The Everglow and listened to it correctly. She told me she was tearing up by the last song. No joke.

So, really, what's the final score?

10/10.

Seriously.

~

And so ends my review of The Everglow! Thoughts? Criticism? It's all welcome :D

-- Edited by Lock at 23:40, 2008-01-19