Sun Kil Moon's Common As Light and Love Are Red Valleys of Blood

TLDR that's my favorite album. If you don't feel like reading anymore you don't have to. I've been telling everyone I know how great his album is, now it's time to share my thoughts with Steemit. Lets go

"Album"

I should have quotes around album. When I think of this "album" it doesn't fit into that category. This album is more like a short story journal of a travel who is burdened with a melancholic poetic license to make us all feel a little better about the eternal sadness we have no choice but to endure.

Every song is more like a short story, and in some cases are. Take songs like 'Stranger Than Paradise' or 'Sarah Lawrence College Song,' these songs are more like a spoken word story woven around a groove and some melody thrown in to keep you on edge. These songs, like every song on this "album," take you somewhere, show you what it's like to be Mark Kozelek (vocalist, lyricist and composer of the band). But that's not at all, not by a long shot. This album makes you feel, makes you really feel. This album throws everything out the window in an effort to make you feel, and boy does it succeed and then some.

Raw

This album is raw as raw can be. If this album was a steak, it would still be the cow walking around the field. Mark accomplishes this with his incredible song writing, polish and lack there of when it needs it and when it does not. Combine that with deeply personal stories, a trade mark of Sun Kil Moon records. This record, however, takes it to another level. With songs that tell such a real and vivid story you feel like you're right there. Songs like 'I Love Portugal' make you feel like you're strolling along the streets of Aporto, listening to vinyl music and eating steak.

Honesty

When Mark Kozelek writes he is Mark Mark Kozelek. He's not trying to write a great album, a cool album, a life changing album, he's trying to write an album Mark Kozelek would write( it's crazy that I even have to write that but it's rare these days). This album is so personal and Raw that you feel like you know Mark. The stories come from the heart, come from his soul and touch you in a way only personal music can. This album is full of tales from Mark's life and his adventures of a traveling musician. Maybe because I lived almost 10 years the same way that I can relate so well but let me tell you, the way he describes that life, the random friends, the travel, the little things you remember about an entire tour speak so much to me. This does however bring me to my next point

This Album is not for Everyone / My One Criticism of this Album

Many people may not get what this album is trying to say. The ideas being laid down so strongly might not connect with you. It's not an easy listen, a frustration of mine is that it relies heavily on understanding the English language. This prevents me from sharing this music with my Dutch friends and family, as I think it would be too much.

My only complaint I have about the record is the opening track 'God Bless Ohio. ' With the rest of the album, the songs might be long, but the length and the lyrics are crucial to the story. With God Bless Ohio, I find it to be a 10:37 song that's a little bit too repetitive. The rest of the album has such a good flow and feel that even on 12 minute songs it doesn't feel too long. There is beauty and depth in the opening track, it just feels a little long to me. But, too end on a positive note, I have one more thing to point out that's actually really surprising to me

Groove

THIS RECORD GROOVES man does this band groove. Steve Shelley on drums (Sonic Youth) and Nick Zubeck on base create such great feels across all the songs on this recording. A lot of these songs are stripped back and simple, but the feel is so great and so different, yet groovy. Take a song like 'Bergen to Trondheim,' what a badass groove, it provides such a strong powerful base for Mark's vocals to condemn a mass murderer, adding to the anger and rage in the vocals. As a professional drummer for 10 years, I'm hyper sensitive to groove. This album passes my grooves test with flying colors, I've actually sat down and played a long with a few grooves they feel that good.

Listen to this Record As Soon As Possible

What are you waiting for? This album is a masterpiece. This album will change you, this album will stay with you. This album will make you question a lot of things in your life. This album will give you hope that even in the darkest times, some beautiful part of life can be forced out of the dirt. This album will tell you that it's a lonely, terrible and difficult time being a traveling musician but you wouldn't change a thing about it because its what you have to do. You will appreciate life more, you will appreciate those around you more, you will be angry, you will laugh, you will nod your head, you will shake your head, you will feel. You Will Feel

Thanks for reading,

Joel