From: Salonen@aol.com
Subject: My Incredibly Important Opinion of AENT -Kinda Long. Read at own risk
Date: 2/9/2002 9:49:45 PM
To: seance@lists.no-fi.com


Dear Friends,

I will try to keep this short and sweet. Oh hell, you all know that's a lie. 
I'll ramble forever. But it'll be worth it! I promise. Yeah right. Anyway, at 
first I wasn't overly impressed with this album. Yes, it's subtle. But after 
about 5 listens (no beer, some codeine, lots of driving - but no codeine and 
driving at the same time ; ) ) However, I do wish I'd been with Alton, 
driving around in the rain in LA and blowing smoke out the window. Well, he 
could blow the smoke. But I loved the imagery. Anyway - I love the CD. I 
adore it. Words fail me. Beautiful, lush, melancholy, sad, sweet - all these 
words seem overused and thus meaningless. My heart feels things my mind 
cannot express. I also thought the production was a bit muddled at first 
(don't tell me to clean out my ears, my ears are fine!) but as I listened to 
it more I thought, "This is an album you must listen to 
carefully...quietly....no other distractions must be interfering with the 
experience. So I quit my job, abandoned my friends and family and can be 
found locked in my room henceforth, listening to AENT over and over.

I jest. Anyway, a short (or not so short) song by song analysis:

Numbers: Better than average Church song. Liked it from the beginning. From 
many of the lyrics/words I really started to wonder what Steve was singing 
about. I think I got the single not too terribly long after the WTC/Pentagon 
attacks, so certain words kept jumping out at me: cockpit, martyrs, failed 
talks, question the ritual, threats are gonna get you all, officers, flaming 
sun, vast and molten sky, knives and forks, lucky pricks who went to Heaven. 
No, I don't think Steve has ESP...I think I was projecting my own thoughts 
about what had just happened in America onto the song. But I really would 
like to know what Steve was thinking about when he wrote this.

After Everything: Transcendent. Gorgeous guitar work. The Church at their 
melancholy best. From these lyrics, I felt so much sadness, regret, loss. Yet 
I didn't cry, which is odd, because I cry at everything! Favourite lines:

I really thought it would go on forever
All of the questions remaining unanswered
(This makes me think of someone on their deathbed - realising it's all coming 
to an end and everything is still as much of a mystery as it ever was)

Also: This made me think of the cyclical nature of life when he talks about 
the child in the garden, the old man with the broken heart, the train taking 
you back to where you started. Also, just being lost in life. "Never really 
sure what I was waiting for...when the moment came I was looking away."

Jesus, if that isn't the saddest line ever. So true. And talking about the 
past and future and "never took the time to be here today" which is so 
brilliant. Reminds me of Eckhart Tolle's book "The Power of Now" - trying to 
live in the present moment is probably the hardest thing to do in the world.

The Awful Ache: Probably my favourite song on the whole album. When Steve 
sings  "it takes a little pain out of the sting" - then I want to cry. Unlike 
many others though, I HATE THAT MIDDLE PART OF THE SONG! Is that the middle 
eight someone was referring to? Christ on the Cross, why have the ruined a 
beautiful song with that GLOOMY, foreboding guitar? I feel like Frankenstein 
is about to appear at any moment in a bad horror movie. I know, I'm nuts. Duh 
duh duh DUH duh duh duh duh DUH duh. Also, am I the only person who thinks 
Steve is singing "Esmerelda walks on down to the symmetry? The way he says 
cemetery....diction Steve! Diction! When she walks past his grave, my heart 
breaks.

Song For the Asking: The keyboards. So sad at beginning. Love them. But the 
"yeah yeah yeah" has got to go go go. Although I like the melody of the 
chorus, the lyrics seem kind of stupid. Does he actually say "Song for a big 
movie" or DO I need my ears cleaned out? If he sings that, I'm sorry, that's 
stupid.  The tiny, short keyboards at the end. Oh man. Fading out...so sad. I 
want more keyboards here. It makes me feel lost.

Chromium: GREAT song. I love many of Marty's solo works though. I am partial 
to Marty's solo stuff over Steve's. I LOVE these lyrics. Did someone talk 
about him driving through through L.A. or Beverly Hills or something in this 
song? It's so L.A. "Morning programs with fake suntans." Anyone who can put 
the word cul de sac in a song and make it sound cool gets points with me. His 
voice isn't Steve's, but I think this song fits very well with the whole CD. 
Neato guitar. And yeah, I said neato. Got a problem with that?

Radiance: Funky beginning. I am feeling a 70's kind of vibe here. This is the 
Fatima song. Or what I thought Steve was talking about. Is it me or is Steve 
oddly fixated on religious/Judeo-Christian imagery/ritual, etc? Crosses, holy 
ladies, holy wines, virgins, icons in the church crying tears of blood, 
pilgram lunatics...this song is nice, but it doesn't bowl me over. I have no 
visions whilst listening to it. Must. Find. More. Codeine.

Reprieve:My second favourite song on the CD.  I LOVE THIS FUCKING 
SONG!!!!!!!!!!!! I just want to make it clear. From the moment he sings 'When 
you're gone" I want to just scream for some reason. I love hearing him talk 
about watching someone sleep. In the two times I've met Steve, he strikes me 
as a very guarded person in public and I love hearing more vulnerability from 
him in these lyrics. OH! And the bass line! JEEEEEESUS!!!! If that isn't the 
coolest damn thing in the world I don't know what is. Speaking of the 
1970's....this bass line totally makes me think of some 70's show like 
Starsky and Hutch/Harry-O/Streets of San Francisco. I swear, during the bass 
line, I can just see Huggy Bear screaming "HUTCH! WATCH OUT! He's got a gun!" 
Ok, so I watch too much TNN. Sue me. Also, if you play the bass part 
backwards on your CD player whilst listening to it, Steve does say Marty is 
Satan. Knights in Satan's Service? NO! I'm kidding. But it totally sounds 
like a slot machine in Vegas! I kid you not. Try it. Then, after the bass 
line. WOWZA! The guitar ROARS and Steve sings/screams "WHEN YOU'RE GONE - NO 
MORE TRACKS FOR ME TO RUN ON....!!!! And I'm so happy I think, no more 
caffeine for me! I'm going to get a ticket while driving and listening to 
this song I just know it.

Night Friends: Dumb title. It sounds like some crappy movie that's on at 3am 
on Showtime when I'm up all night and can't sleep. Notice how I keep alluding 
to movies? Don't ask me why. Love the keyboards/piano though. Beautiful. 
Those little maraca thingies can go though. I start to think that sound is 
coming from inside my head. Or that I'm surrounded by rattle snakes. Again, 
it could be the meds. ; ) The guitar weeps during this song. Is it Marty or 
Peter? Does it matter. It's stunning. Steve is singing sooooooooooo 
slowwwwwwwwly here. Too. Much. Pot. (As Alton says, Can there ever be such a 
thing? ; ) ) Steve is waaaaaay druggy on this song. I just can't stand to 
hear him sing "Night Friends" which sounds like he's singing "Not Friends." 
Hmm. Freudian. Is he talking about fans swarming around him after shows? Am I 
reading into this? Yes and yes and yes.

Seen It Coming: Hey man. Hey man, I think hey man sounds stupid. But then 
again, he's just come away from his druggy Night Friends experience. I know 
I'm in the minority here in not liking the hey man. Yeah.....another toke 
Stev-o? I am not overly impressed with this little ditty.

Invisible: Lovely. Lonely. Subtle. Serene. I like hearing the fingers moving 
across the guitar strings. Gorgeous line: All I ever wanted to see was just 
invisible to me.  Who said this reminded them of "Providence?" So true. It is 
very, very similar to that song, which BTW was my favourite song off the Jack 
Frost CD.

And that my day and night friends, is my 2 cents. Ok, so it was more like 50 
cents. You can all wake up now.

Denise : )