Sparklehorse were one of the most underated bands of the 90's. There excellence was overshadowed by bands such as Mercury Rev, The Flaming Lips, and Radiohead. I have always liked Sparklehorse,ever since I heard "Homecoming Queen" from there debut album. Although I site Sparklehorse as one of my favorite bands I own onlytwo Sparklehorse albums, their debut and "Good Morning Spider." Even though I purchased this album before their debut I still prefer their debut album due to nostalgic values. Saying this I still beleive that this album is nothing less of excellent. Sparklehorse never got as much credit as they deserved and if you're a fan of the bands I mentioned above please check this album out. "
Good Morning Spider" is an eerie, depressing, and dreary album. Unlike the bands debut you won't find many upbeat noise-pop tunes. The lead songwriter and guitarists Mark Linkous had a near death experience between the bands debut and there sophomore album. Linkous was paralyzed for quite some time and you can really see a change in the music. The way I see it "Good Morning Spider" has two different sides. For the most part these songs are haunting, gloomy, and creepy. They are soft, dreary, and atmospheric. Most of these songs have a ballad type feel, they usually run from three to five minutes long. However Sparklehorse do not stop here. The other side of "Good Morning Spider" is the noise-rock, and lo-fi sound. The opener "Pig" is a perfect example of this. Fuzzy vocals, catchy guitar riffs and the chorus explodes to create a loud distorted feel. These songs are hard to digest at first, but after a few listens you can't stop listening to them. Generally this album is dreary and depressing, soft lo-fi guitar strums, high pitched vocals and a few rockers are thrown in the mix, that is basically what "Good Morning Spider" is. These dreary strums and the atmospheric sound of the album combine to make incredible, beautiful songs. "Good Morning Spider" is a dark album, but some of the noise rockers thrown in make this album interesting and exciting. When I first purchased this album I was very surprised by how much this band has changed. "Good Morning Spider" isn't an exciting load of fun, but it certaintly isn't a bore either.
Musically "Good Morning Spider" is excellent. You will discover something new everytime you listen to this. Guitar riffs, and dreary vocals control most of the drearier and gloomy tunes. Musically the dreary songs are really well done, there isn't a lot going on but the music speaks for itself. On the more rock influenced tunes the guitar riffs are fuzzy and distorted while the rythm section is blazing and catchy. Some electronics and even horns are used in some of these tracks but for the most part a guitar, a bass, and drums control the music. The vocals are another high point for this album. They can be high-pitched and out of control, or on the more melancholy songs they sound more soft and gentle. The vocals mix very well with the songs, Mark has a great amount of range and hardly ever makes a mistake. You can really get into Mark's vocals, it seems like he is sitting right next to you and he's singing to you. The only downside about the vocals is that Mark really needs to speak up. In some of the ballad-esque, dreary songs he whisperes into the microphone and this becomes tedious. Other than that this album succeeds musically and vocally.
Overall I think this is a fantastic album. Through the depressing moments and the rock moments Sparklehorse always seem to make things work. "Good Morning Spider" isn't a very experimental album, even though there are some obvious electronic effects and brief trumpet appearences this album can be a bore at times. Even though there are some hard noise-rocking songs on this album there isn't enough subastance to make this a five star album. Don't get me wrong, this album has depth but not as much as the bands debut album "Vivadixies..." If you are just getting into Sparklehorse I would start with there debut album, it has more range and it is a lot easier to get into. "Good Morning Spider" is a dreary, and gloomy album so if you want more upbeat songs than don't look here. In general I don't usually find depressing music enjoyable, but this album is an acception because I can really get into it. Sparklehorse is an extremely underated band, and you should really check them out if you like bands like Mercury Rev, and the Flaming Lips. Throughout all of the rocking songs and the soft, gentle depressing songs this album is one hell of a ride.
