The Wheel's Still In Spin: Weakerthans

Weakerthansreuniontour

Release Date: 25 Sept 2007 (Epitaph / Anti)

Imagine a band hosting a poker tournament between Fountains Of Wayne and The Decemberists. There would be some interesting conversations. They'd probably talk about music. There would have to be some storytelling. Some tales would be hard to believe, but told with an impeccable poker face. Some would seem most likely true based on the attention to the minute details. The hosts for this tournament are Canada's The Weakerthans. Even if they lost every hand, they ended up with a 37-minute album full of catchy, upbeat melodies and character driven musical exhibits.

Download "Sun In An Empty Room" (mp3)
Download "Night Windows" (mp3)

Greg's Move To Start Over

"What are you doing?" Paul asked in such dismay that it almost sounded forceful.

"I was just going to make a few more mixes for the road," Greg calmly tried to explain.

"You need to just pack all this stuff. You'll never leave if you don't."

He knew Paul was right, but moving back to his hometown, back to his parent's house, was not easy for Greg.

It seems like it would be hard to pinpoint when things started going bad. The job, the apartment, the money situation. Nothing seemed to be going his way. But it all started to unravel when Beth broke up with him. That one event was not responsible for everything that followed, but it was the catalyst that started the downward spiral.

After pausing for a minute, Greg decided to stop making mixes. He put on a CD, The Weakerthans’ Reunion Tour, and asked his friend, "Mind helping me load up the car?"

"That’s why I’m here."

The first sounds of the album were projected through the speakers. An electric guitar cut in and out as the introduction to "Civil Twilight." After a few seconds, the song burst with the full band sound and vocals immediately piped in. The song was descriptively set in a December traffic jam at dusk. Repeatedly at this time of day, the narrator laments about a past love. "I’m always remembering you/ In civil twilight." As he thinks about this old relationship, he realizes, "My chance to say something seemed so frequent/ It wasn’t. Now I know I had plenty of time/ Between the sunset and certified darkness." These thoughts were juxtaposed against a guitar driven pop song.

Greg and Paul were picking up the boxes of Greg’s belongings and packing them in the trunk, backseat, and every available space. As they came in out of the house, they would hear bits and pieces of the album. A few of the songs echoed a similar them as "Civil Twilight" and Greg thought back to Beth. In his mind he can never seem to determine if they had a good or bad relationship. Everything seemed all right. It never seemed great. It never seemed bad. Greg has begun think it had to do with communication. They never talked about what was bad or good. They just let things happen. After enough time, things just stopped working.

The piercing guitar riffs of "Tournament of Hearts" reiterated this notion. “I know you’re out their waiting/ For an answer I can’t give you/ So tell me/ 'Why, why can’t I draw right up to what I want to say/ Why can’t I ever stop where I want to stay?'"

There was also "Night Windows," with the drums pounding and clicking out a tempo and the bass line melodic guiding the subtle build up of the song. The song was full of phrases like "But you’re not coming home again," "And I won’t ever get to say," and "Remember how/ I’m sorry that I missed the way it could be." Like Greg, the narrator was longing for the lost love or at some resolution of those feelings.

The break-up is not the sole reason for Greg's move. After Beth moved out, Greg got depressed. He spent a lot of nights drinking alone. Occasionally, one of his friends, maybe Paul, would drink away the night with him. Eventually a combination of too many hangovers and too much apathy lead to not caring about his job very much. Greg was working in sales. In order to make his monthly goals, earn his commission and pay his bills, he needed to have the desire and push to succeed. When a salesman loses his drive, he quickly stops hitting the needed benchmarks. Of course, The Weakerthans' album that Greg was listening to has a song that deals with a similar topic.

"Relative Surplus Value" was a song about being stuck in a hard place after being laid off. There were two guitars driving the song with pulsating drums. One guitar was flanged out and rhythmic. The other was intermittent an slicing. "You won't be laughing when you hear how this one ends." The song's character had flown to a meeting to find out that "By the time the market opens in Tokyo/ I'll be worthless." Now, stranded and penniless, the newly laid-off man must call a friend he hasn't spoken to in a while just to ask for a ride and place to stay.

As Greg's decline was about more than losing a girlfriend and job, Reunion Tour also tackled more topics of loss. "Hymn Of The Medical Oddity," with its deliberate and melodic guitar plucks trading off with a warm bass line, revealed the thoughts of someone who has been diagnosed with a rare disease. While he appears to be comfortable with the fact that he may not survive the disease, he wants to be remember for who he is, not for the disease he has. "And if they remember me at all/ Make them remember me/ As more than a queer experiment/ More than a diagram in their quarterly/ Make them remember me."

"Virtute The Cat Explains Her Departure" was sung from the point of view of cat that has to leave its owner. Mixed with the brushes on drums, organ, and distorted guitars, the song poetically told the progression of the cat's emotions in a touching and believable way.

"Elegy For Gump Worsley" sounded like a musical obituary. With its banjo, guitar, abstract bass, and talking vocals, singer John K Samson chronicled the NHL goalie's career. It wasn't full of statistical highlights from the career, but recorded the stories that made Worsley a unique character, a role model, and a hero.

"How are you going to get the coffee table and bed into your car?" Paul asked.

Greg hadn't thought about it too much. He knew he had to leave. He didn't have to many choices. "I guess I figured I'd just leave it for the landlord to figure out."

"You can put in the back of my truck. Whatever we can fit in back I'll take to the thrift store tomorrow."

With his car packed and the rest of the furniture in the back of Paul's truck, Greg was ready to relax and try to get some sleep before driving away tomorrow morning. He'd kick back and have a few final beers with this friend in his empty apartment.

The next morning when he woke up, Greg thought about the song "Sun In An Empty Room." It was a pop song with layers of guitars and keyboards. The vocals reflected the final repairs made in an effort to get back the deposit. "Watch his shadow across the floor/ We don't live here anymore." After Greg cleaned the apartment for the last time, he threw away the empty six packs from his last night and got in his car.

As Greg drove away from his old apartment, he left behind more than an old dwelling, and ex-girlfriend, and a former job. At the age of 26 he was returning to his parent's house to start his life over again. Once again, he put on The Weakerthans' Reunion Tour. The album was full of searing guitar riffs and pop laden melodies. The lyrics depicted unique, specific descriptions. The themes address ideas of lamentation, loss, and regret. Somewhere on the road home, he heard the final track, "Utilities," which started with random and sustaining keyboard and guitar feedback tones before the full band kicked in. The song built, but continually cut back to hi-hat, rim shots, sustained organs, and a pedal steel. It would take a while for Greg to rebuild his confidence and the lyrics to this song resonated with his current mood. "Got more faults than the state of California/ And the heart is a badly built bridge/ Seems the most i have to offer/ Doesn't offer much/ Make it something/ Somebody can use."

Download The Weakerthans’ music with eMusic’s 25 FREE MP3 Trial Offer. No Restrictions - Own Your Music!