For our third fan request, courtesy of Jose (Nokjaw), we are pleased to analyze the album Ohio by [DARYL]. A throwback of about a decade, Ohio takes us back to the impassioned roots of Indi-punk. With its garage-born atmosphere, we explore the album’s theme, style, and structure. Just another day on Crash Chords! Following that, we discuss the use of common sound effects and textural practices. Why do some things grow stale, while others stay timeless? And who gets away with it?
Next week’s review:
Check Your Head by Beastie Boys
Guest: Schaffer the Darklord
3078 Total Views 1 Views Today
Hey guys, I played drums for this band. I just finish the episode and want to tell you how insane you guys are for spending 2 hours of your life dissecting this album. Plus, the week you spent listening to it. You spent more time with this album then everyone in my family combined! Im so glad this world has psychos like yourselves that still have this kind of passion for music. I’ll give you a little back story on this album. This was a concept album based on Dylan’s (lead singer/songwriter) upbringing in parts of Ohio, around his high school years (except the last track, that was mostly based on us seeing the Columbia shuttle disaster unfold on TV. Think we were in a shitty dinner/gas station somewhere on tour) . The song Rooms 31 and 30 is about him setting a fire in his school with some other kids, and him taking all the blame for it, i think… shit it’s been a long time. We were in our mid-20’s when we recorded it. This album was our 5th and last release. We broke up in 2006 or 07. The singer and one of the guitar players has a new thing called These Machines Are Winning, got one album out , and about to release another. Another guitar player has a band called West Windows, it’s good stuff. Myself and the Bass player have had a couple of bands, Blood on the Moors and Les Americans. If you want any of this stuff I’ll to send it your way, It’s the least I can do. Anyways, thanks for taking the time to break it down. It was amazing how much you got out of the tracks with only having the tunes, not knowing us, not even having a physical copy of the album! Truly amazing! Thanks.
Michael, thanks so much for reaching out! We absolutely love to hear about albums straight from the horse’s mouth, as these opportunities are usually few and far between. I’m glad to hear you got a kick out of this “insane” music analysis from us three “psychos”—these compliments mean everything to us. It was our pleasure to spend time with Ohio, a pleasure we owe to our fan (and yours): Jose E (Nokjaw). Just recently, he sent along the lyrics from the liner notes. Looking at them now, combined with your own insight, it’s fun to see what we got right and what we got wrong. Among the wrong, evidently our entire take on “Rooms 31 & 30,” along with the “Right Now I Could Be A Ghost” line, “constant ERROR” (not “constant air”), and perhaps the funniest mistake, the line from “Make-Up”: … “afternoon disguise” as opposed to, “[raptor] or [wrapper] in disguise” (as me & Jon hopelessly theorized). It’s also facinating to hear the truth about the final track — something we might never have known, even with lyrics. Sometimes things are more on-the-nose than one would expect. Anyway, it’s all a part of the challenge! Especially when the music itself is more than enough food for discussion, we always consider these 2 hours-a-week well-spent!
Finally, to your offer, we would be honored if you sent along your current work. Enjoyment notwithstanding, they might very well find their way to other areas of our growing website. Please send that along to steve.nagel@crashchords.com. Once again, thanks for taking the time to comment, for the invaluable addendum to our episode, and just for sayin’ hi! Glad the album and episode could stir up nostalgia for us both.