Joan of Arc - The Gap
(Jade Tree)
From the very beginning, Joan of Arc have been considered nothing more
than an "emo" band, or at best a band that thinks they are so great
because they are "weird." "Look, we are really experimental!"
However, I have always felt that Joan of Arc were never given the credit
and respect that they really deserve for being exactly what they are, a
really creative deconstructive pop band.
Through the years and their different albums, Joan of Arc have become
better and better at writing pretty guitar parts, making them into
really beautiful songs, and then cutting them up and piecing them back
together in another form. The Gap continues this trend by being one of
their most cut up and difficult album to date.
I realize that a lot of people might really just prefer that Joan of Arc
release the original songs the way they were originally formed, and I
can't say I completely disagree. Their more traditional songs are
really wonderful to listen to, and the few they do include per album
really help to hold the album in place. However, as difficult of a
listen as some of their other songs can be (this
album in particular), the reward is definitely worth the time and effort
invested. Through the process of song creation, deconstruction, and
reformation, the songs created are more unique, interesting, and even
more enjoyable to listen to for a longer amount of time.
"(You) [I] Can Not See (You) [Me] as (I) [You] Can" starts off the album
with a lulling tone, repeating guitar line, and laid back singing.
Each individual track repeats at different times and cleanly cuts out at
different times from each other creating a totally new rhythm within the
song. Another lulling ebowed guitar part comes in near the end, and
stays constant, pulling the whole song back together and slowly taking
it completely over.
The Gap continues where their last album left off and is just one more
step away from traditional song writing. It contains songs similar (in
style) to the ones on their earlier releases: beautifully drifting
collages of sound and brilliantly fractured pop songs. This is the
best Joan of Arc record to date, and with a little time and effort,
hopefully more people can see past the inaccurate broad strokes that
Joan of Arc have been painted with and give them the credit they
deserve.
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