Christgau on Comet Gain

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I'm crying as I write this. I can't believe The Dean disses Realistes in his praise of City Fallen Leaves. How could this be fucking happening?

He says that they've always had the right sound, but never the right songs. Is he saying he doesn't like their songwriting? Somebody tell me this is all a dream.

COMET GAIN
City Fallen Leaves
(Kill Rock Stars)

These Brits always had the right sound but never the right songs, and now they've probably found their jangle-punk tune sense too late. The title sums up an autumnal mood as unlikely to excite site-hopping hot-new-banders as the grim statistic that this is their seventh album. But as a 30-ish look back at a life untriumphant because you weren't quite talented enough, it's superb. The indie-rock scene anchors the details, but the story told by the pensive "Days I Forgot to Write Down" and the headlong "Just One More Summer Before I Go" are for anyone who didn't fucking get what they wanted and still fucking lost what they had. A MINUS

― The King of Flop Threads, Thursday, 5 January 2006 04:06 (twenty years ago)

they've been pretty useless post-casino classics

― keyth (keyth), Thursday, 5 January 2006 04:13 (twenty years ago)

I wanna hear this! Reminds me of another veteran English indie band who put out a late period album that was probably pretty good, too, but I never got to hear it: that Quickspace album that Matador put out.

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Thursday, 5 January 2006 04:16 (twenty years ago)

every comet gain record has at least one stone cold classic on it. can't imagine this one being any different.

the death of quickspace is a reasonably good record, yes

― jim p. irrelevant (electricsound), Thursday, 5 January 2006 04:38 (twenty years ago)

every comet gain record has at least one stone cold classic on it.

OTM. Realistes had Why I Try To Look So Bad, among others. I can't wait to hear the new one.

― kornrulez6969 (TCBeing), Thursday, 5 January 2006 04:48 (twenty years ago)

"But as a 30-ish look back at a life untriumphant because you weren't quite talented enough, it's superb."

that's beautiful

― the deaner, Thursday, 5 January 2006 06:14 (twenty years ago)

wait we're s'posed to triumph in our 30s? damn.

this reminds me of a conversation w/a guy i know who called himself a failure, which was very interesting to me. a strange way to think of yourself.

but anyway, 7th album or not, wtf do comet gain sound like?

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Thursday, 5 January 2006 07:46 (twenty years ago)

ONE THREAD PER XGAU CONSUMER GUIDE THX PLZ

― j blount (papa la bas), Thursday, 5 January 2006 07:48 (twenty years ago)

SERIOUSLY I KNOW YOU INDIE DORX HAVE YR MINDS BLOWN PRETTY EASILY, 'NO SUFJAN NO CREDIBILITY' AND ALL THAT, BUT PERHAPS BLOGGING ABOUT IT IS A BETTER MORE REWARDING ROUTE FOR YOU TO CONSIDER NEXT TIME

― j blount (papa la bas), Thursday, 5 January 2006 07:49 (twenty years ago)

OK BUT BEFORE THEY LEAVE CAN THEY TELL ME WHAT COMET GAIN SOUNDS LIKE?

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Thursday, 5 January 2006 07:54 (twenty years ago)

c86 with a great desire to be soul

― jim p. irrelevant (electricsound), Thursday, 5 January 2006 07:57 (twenty years ago)

seriously i'm much more intereested (fuck i retyped that word 3 times and still got it wrong, i may be drunk) in comet gain than antony because i know what antony sounds like. i like their name, it sounds like a new line of household cleaning product

xpost: a great desire or just kind of a lazy it'd-be-nice desire? that would make the difference

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Thursday, 5 January 2006 08:00 (twenty years ago)

a *great* desire. and i should have specified northern soul

― jim p. irrelevant (electricsound), Thursday, 5 January 2006 08:00 (twenty years ago)

Like the band a lot, like the new album a lot. Not quite sure how to take the whole "right sound wrong songs" thing, given how much their sound (production?) changed after Sneaky/Magnetic Poetry, which I suspect Christgau hasn't given his full attention if he's thinking that City Fallen Leaves is their 1st discovery of tunefullness.

How do they have 7 albums? I can't get the math to work. Either I don't know what I'm talking about (very possible) or someone went to Allmusic (which lists 7 albums, some of which aren't) for discography info. Which furthers my "didn't hear the whole catalog" theory."

Anyway, I'd be thrilled if the album did well enough to get them back to the US. Would love to see them live again. That C86+Northern Soul description is pretty much OTM.

― dlp9001, Thursday, 5 January 2006 09:51 (twenty years ago)

*counts* i can only think of 5 (considering sneaky/mag poetry are essentially different versions of the same album)

― jim p. irrelevant (electricsound), Thursday, 5 January 2006 10:02 (twenty years ago)

Either I don't know what I'm talking about (very possible) or someone went to Allmusic (which lists 7 albums, some of which aren't) for discography info.

I can pretty much assure everyone that Xgau doesn't gets his information from the All Music Guide.

― Joseph McCombs (Joseph McCombs), Thursday, 5 January 2006 15:16 (twenty years ago)

Just thought it was an interesting coincidence that both would have the same (wrong) number of albums for the band. Checked around to see if Kill Rock Stars had that number in their press, but they don't seem to. Since Xgau doesn't answer questions, I guess we'll never know.

Anyways, he's wrong about them finding their jangle-blop-blop too late, since they found it about 3 albums ago. Or 7. Or something like that.

Last time I'm aware of them playing in NY, it was with Girlfrendo. It'd be kind of interesting/fun if they came back with Love Is All.

― dlp9001, Thursday, 5 January 2006 18:50 (twenty years ago)

first Legends record > all of Comet Gain

― cdwill, Thursday, 5 January 2006 22:36 (twenty years ago)

i like the legends album, but they fuckin wish

― jim p. irrelevant (electricsound), Thursday, 5 January 2006 22:37 (twenty years ago)

Felt, yo

― detoxyDancer (sexyDancer), Thursday, 5 January 2006 22:46 (twenty years ago)

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