Anyway, this album is pretty decent. Although I think a lot of it sounds similar and all the tracks seem to have this formula to them (that being intro-verse-chorus-verse-chorus-long instrumental outro), Mr. Graf's lyrics are quite good on such songs as "I Will Forget," and "UPS Worker." But still, there is something missing from this album. Maybe 1 solid rock track would be nice (look for thier next release which promises to be more rock oriented). I dunno, after hearing this album it kinda' makes me want to kill somebody, not because it's bad, but because I know Boxstep is capable of more.


A very pretty record   May 15, 2002
 2 out of 2 found this review helpful

I saw Boxstep by accident at TT the Bears in Boston. A friend's band was playing there first show and they were good, followed by a very mediocre rock band. Then Boxstep comes on with mounds upon mounds of people and gear with violins and pianos and all. And they calmly begin to play some of the most gorgeous music I had ever heard live. It was one of the best shows I have ever seen. Very nearly a religious experience. There were maybe 10 people in the room. I was practicly drooling when I asked one of the violinists for a cd which I happily gave $10 for and would have paid more. The CD doesn't quite capture the experience of Boxstep live, and I have to take off a star just for the ine "and pardons come from a govener" but those are the only flaws on a brillient, poignent and beautiful CD that everyone should own. This CD sings me to sleep nearly every night, accompany's me on rainy days....Sounds like nothing else. They are not afraid to be pretty or to rock. Great slide guitar playing, great vocal harmonies. Great textures and brilliant songwriting. The closest thing I would say would be the Cowboy Junkies, but thats still nothing like it. Just buy it, support original artists.


Somewhere between Type O Negative and Britney Spears...   February 12, 2002
 1 out of 2 found this review helpful

What can I say about this band? Well, I can first let everyone know that many of these songs have deep, lovely meaning...to someone, that is. And since that someone is rarely myself, I must step back and look at this thing more objectively. Perhaps I can take a New Critical Formalist Approach. Better yet, why don't I Deconstruct it??? I could easily continue to talk about this CD in terms of ME, but instead I choose to shift to the third person so that the CD can become the topic of discussion.

This CD can be thought of in terms of other bands, not because it is derivative or cliched, but rather so that the reader can have a reference point with which to approach, and hopefully appreciate, the music. Artists like Johny Cash, Leonard Cohen, and Tom Waits, with their not-so-lovely voices, may come to mind in lead singer Eric Graf's terrestrial tales of location and longing. The sound is somewhere to the north of Low, to the southeast of Godspeed You Black Emperor!, a walk down from the Galaxie 500 river near the city of Dirty Three. The music creates a background of wistful desert nights and long red-eye flights across the hills and the sea, but the added dimension of Graf's vocals, with their existential need for love to try and fill the otherwise rhetorical landscape, give a feeling of eternity to the music. Sure, the search for true love will continue to elude man, but there is some hope amidst the disappointment of knowing that he will continue to pursue it until he ceases to exist.
These sorts of emotions have a hard-earned place in the hearts of anyone who has dared to give a part of themselves to someone who they find hope and security in.
Metaphors and deceptively simple lyrics give the lyrics a sort of levity that allows one to not have to walk away while scratching their head and pondering just what that guy meant anyway.

The production quality fits the organic feel of the album, and although the word "organic" could just about describe most of the music that exists in the world, this particular CD has its rightful place in being given that title.
There is a passionate approach to the material, as the artists are not dominated by musical knowledge, but more so by the spirit of their instruments and the collective feel of their sound.

Shifting to second person, if you have the urge to listen to music that lends itself to the type of emotions conveyed in the above paragraphs, then this album may very well rest comfortably on your shelf, between Luna's Penthouse and Palace Music's Viva Last Blues!.

Also, I want to give a shoutout to my boys at Amazon!! ....