Artist: The Good Life
Date Released: 2004
Label: Saddle Creek
Produced By:
Tracklisting:
- Album of the Year
- Night and Day
- Under a Honeymoon
- You're No Fool
- Notes in His Pocket
- You're Not You
- October Leaves
- Lovers Need Lawyers
- Inmates
- Needy
- A New Friend
- Two Years This Month
Review[]
By now everybody knows the story of The Good Life and how it came to be. Tim Kasher, of Cursive fame, was looking for an outlet for his songwriting skills that did not pertain to the Cursive sound, so he and his fellow Omahanians formed The Good Life to much acclaim and praise. After a rotation of players, the line-up has solidified with Kashner, drummer Roger Lewis, Desaparecidos bassist Landon Hedges, and Stefanie Drootin. Their sound has progressed into folky, indie rock that rides on Kashner’s unparalleled songwriting along with catchy and innovative instrumentation. Every song is cinematic and moody, with something individual that separates it from the rest of the album. Which, of course, prefectly reflects the monthly theme of the album. For example, 'You're No Fool' has Kashner dueling with an amazingly complimentary muted trumpet, 'Needy' utilizes spacey, almost video game-esque keyboards, and 'Inmates' is an epic duet with former bandmate and sometimes Bright Eyes flutist, Jiha Lee. Kashner's songwriting continues to progress, and at this rate, he could become one of the most heralded songwriters of this indie-rock generation. Michael Ardaiolo