Look at me! I'm on TV, it makes up for the shortcomings of being poor

For every band I listen to I have one cd that I like beyond everything else they have done or will ever do. NOFX has Punk in Drublic, Thrice has The Illusion of Safety and Talib and Mos Def have Black Star. I still listen to the rest of the music these people put out, but I always end up coming back to that one album that first caught my attention. It’s hard for a band to top the first impression.

There are some rare cases where I end up liking a second or third albums I hear more than the first (I like alexisonfire’s Watch Out! way more than the self-titled), but cases where I actually appreciate an artist’s growth are few and far between. This is often a source of consternation as new albums tend to disappoint, or live performances don’t showcase the songs I am looking forward to hearing (see Thrice last month).

Getting to what I actually want to talk about, this week Belle and Sebastian put out a live record that solves all my problems. It was recorded September 25, 2004 at the Barbican in London (home of the London Symphony Orchestra), and they simply played all the songs off of If You’re Feeling Sinister, which happens to be my favourite Belle and Sebastian album. I don’t know how to put how awesome it is to hear the band redo the album a good nine years after it was released. There are some definite differences beyond the fact that one is live and the other recorded. The songs seem played faster, and with more confidence on the live record. Plus you can hear the individual instruments better. I think all bands should follow Belle and Sebastian’s lead here. They know which of their albums everyone likes the most. Just rerecord that album you jerks. I’d buy it.

Peace.