mewithoutYou
Catch For Us the Foxes


4.0
excellent

Review

by Kiran EMERITUS
October 22nd, 2008 | 495 replies


Release Date: 2004 | Tracklist

Review Summary: Combining the aggressive elements of A to B: Life with the atmospheric Brother, Sister, then throwing Weiss' vocal and lyrical prowess into the mix, Catch For Us The Foxes demands to be heard.

If you’re familiar with A to B: Life, it was a much rawer, more aggressive album compared to Brother, Sister, a far more atmospheric, indie-influenced album revolving around the melodic ramblings of Aaron Weiss. Catch For Us The Foxes, the bands 2nd full length, serves as the stepping-stone between the two, combining the aggressive elements of their previous record with a rawer take on the atmospheric approach that distinguished their follow up. Of course, if you’re not in fact familiar with mewithoutYou, Catch For Us The Foxes is a perfect introduction; showcasing some of the best elements of the band whilst hinting at many of the things to come.

Easily distinguishable from the very start, Aaron Weiss is quite a unique front man. He takes an aggressive spoken-word approach, albeit more melodic than on the bands last outing, sometimes reduced to a ramble and at other times full blown screams above the soundscape the band creates behind him. His voice often serves as the focal point of emotion, only bolstered by his masterfully crafted lyrics. Weiss is a poet at his core and his lyrics often reflect a sense of personal struggle and introspection which, combined with his vocal ability, make for consistently memorable moments in his songs, such as in opening track “Torches Together” where he sings “You played the flute, but no one was dancing, /And you sang a sad song, and none of us cried.”

His lyrical tales aren’t as fleshed out as on Brother, Sister, but he still manages to portray a keen sense of awareness and imagery, with metaphors aplenty. However, none of this would achieve the same emotional peak that it does, without the assistance of the band. In “Disaster Tourism”, led by the wailing guitar, the song is brought to it’s climax, before sinking back down but instead of allowing it to fade away, the guitars continue with a sinister undertone, as if threatening to explode again, before the song ends. “The Soviet” sees a wayward riff wander behind Weiss’ vocals until a drum roll brings the bass heavy interlude into the songs atmospheric climax. The spoken-word vocals make it so that every last intricacy, every last intertwining guitar or drumbeat, has to achieve a purpose in lifting the meaning of the words, which serve as the emphasis of Weiss’ delivery.

Then there’s God. Aaron Weiss believes in him. He writes a couple lines about him as well. Does that hinder the listening experience in any way? Unless you’re blatantly looking for reasons not to enjoy this, it really shouldn’t. The most obvious example of Weiss’ religious ramblings can be found in the first lines of “The Soviet” when he proclaims, “God is love and love is real”, but apart from that, many of the religious undertones are specifically that: undertones. They aren’t preachy or in your face but rather a lot more subtle and often heavily doused in metaphor. Even when he does talk about God, it relates to a far more personal relationship with him and not an obnoxious imposing of belief. Weiss is far too careful for that. He rides an intricate line between worship and inquisition, stating, “And if I didn't have You as my guide, I'd still wander lost in Sinai” relating to the story of Moses, exemplifying, as I previously stated, his state of personal struggle rather than religious imposition.

Ultimately, mewithoutYou craft songs that pulse with a musical maturity and depth. Stripped of the vocals, this is a post-hardcore record at its core and the riffs, heavy bass lines and sheer urgency of the tempo support this claim. But make no mistake, the living, beating heart of this record is Aaron Weiss.

Catch For Us The Foxes is a torrid musical journey that deserves to be listened to. It’s carved out a niche for mewithoutYou that is specifically their own, distinguishing their sound from any musical counterparts whilst continuing to expand on it, as seen in the follow up, Brother, Sister. This is truly a remarkable listening experience.



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Comments:Add a Comment 
badtaste
October 23rd 2008


824 Comments


Very nice review.

Only thing that bummed me is before the first paragraph is over, you've mentioned the same two album titles three times each.

McP3000
October 23rd 2008


4121 Comments


i need to get this album

Kiran
Emeritus
October 23rd 2008


6134 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

Thanks badtaste, and yeah, I kinda hated the intro while re-reading this, mainly due to the fact I had no idea how to start this and ended up comparing it to their previous and follow up albums. I plan to do some edits later, there are a few parts I want to change.

Spamue1G
October 23rd 2008


1291 Comments


This is a great review. My one complaint is that you went in to MUCH more detail on the vocals than anything else, but I can see why you did that from the rest of your review. pos'd

Kiran
Emeritus
October 23rd 2008


6134 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

fixed.



I may have gotten carried away with Aaron Weiss but he's so so good on this record so it's not unwarranted!

StreetlightRock
October 23rd 2008


4017 Comments

Album Rating: 5.0

yesyesyes

marksellsuswallets
October 23rd 2008


4884 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

Nice review...but...



[quote=summary]Combining the aggressive elements of A to B: Life with the atmospheric Brother, Sister[/quote]



Can it really be a combination of their previous album and one that had not been released yet? I mean I know what you're saying but it just seems weird to say its a combination of the two when one of then hadn't even been thought up yet...maybe I'm just nitpickingThis Message Edited On 10.23.08

Kiran
Emeritus
October 23rd 2008


6134 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

I get what you're saying but I don't think it really matters tbh. Brother, Sister has been released for a long time now and I'm reviewing this album over 4 years after its release, so is it really a huge problem comparing the two despite Brother, Sister not existing at the time of this release? As I explained in the review, I believe this served as a stepping stone between the sounds and I elaborated on that.

kalkal50
October 23rd 2008


2386 Comments

Album Rating: 4.5

Well he did review the album 2 years after the release of Brother, Sister, so despite the anachronism it is fully warranted. This Message Edited On 10.23.08

marksellsuswallets
October 23rd 2008


4884 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

Yeah I wasn't like complaining or anything just when I thought about it it just seemed a bit off at the time

lunchforthesky
October 23rd 2008


1039 Comments

Album Rating: 2.0

It would be better to desrcibe it as a halfway point or a stop gap between the two rather than combining them.

cbmartinez
October 23rd 2008


2525 Comments

Album Rating: 5.0

their best album blah blah blah same old shit i usually say

scalara
October 23rd 2008


71 Comments


yah album rules but it's got nothing on BS. good review too

cbmartinez
October 23rd 2008


2525 Comments

Album Rating: 5.0

um carousels is one of the most powerful mwy songs plz

Athom
Emeritus
October 23rd 2008


17244 Comments


agree with cb

marksellsuswallets
October 23rd 2008


4884 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

indeed



kind of hard to pick their "most powerful" though since almost every song they've written is powerful/moving just about though...to me anyways...This Message Edited On 10.23.08

cbmartinez
October 23rd 2008


2525 Comments

Album Rating: 5.0

up there but not the best, prob the best on that album except for c-minor

Foxhound
June 15th 2010


4573 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

love this

NeutralThunder12
June 23rd 2010


8742 Comments

Album Rating: 4.5 | Sound Off

I. Love. This. Band.

Prolapse
June 23rd 2010


4374 Comments

Album Rating: 4.5

We'll be like torches



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