The Long Winters: When I Pretend to Fall (2003)

 

     The 2004 benefit album Future Soundtrack For America was an oddly significant release in the development in my taste in music. It was here that I first heard Jimmy Eat World's cover of "Game of Pricks" by Guided by Voices, which lead me down the Robert Pollard rabbit hole. It's also where I discovered artists like Clem Snide, Nada Surf and The Long Winters. The Long Winters track was "The Commader Thinks Aloud", which is in the tradition of "A Space Oddity" and "Rocket Man". Although it was an interesting song, it didn't fire my curiosity like "Game of Pricks". I soon forgot The Long Winters. Years later, I was listening to the  Judge John Hodgman podcast and his guest judge was John Roderick of The Long Winters. "Hey, that's that band from the thing", I thought to myself. During the segment, John Hodgman promoted John Roderick's podcast with Merlin Mann, Roderick on the Line. I became an avid listener of RotL and soon began listening to The Long Winters albums. My clear favorite is 2003's When I Pretend to Fall. 

     When I Pretend to Fall finds Roderick being assisted by members of R.EM., Death Cab For Cutie, The Posies and Harvey Danger to create The Long Winters most accessible album. The opening track, "Blue Diamonds", has an infectious chorus; "Cause you're so good at waiting, I'm just saying". The next song, "Scared Straight" is an up-tempo number with great horns. "Shapes" employs one of my favorite songwriting devices. During the middle instrumental section, Roderick shouts out to the band, "Let's go". It's almost as good as a count in. "It'll Be a Breeze" is a beautiful acoustic song about someone who was in an accident. At one point he sounds like Jeff Mangum. In the bridge he sings, "I'm fading in and out and I don't mind. I try to let you know I'm fine and I can hear you crying". "Stupid" is one of my favorite relationship songs. "You have no idea how stupid I would feel if 15 years from now I'd see her and she says why didn't it happen between us stupid". "New Girl" has one of the best lines ever, "Twice you burnt your life's work; once to start a new life and once just to start a fire". The best song on this album is "The Sound of Coming Down". It has anonther of those great repeating choruses, "Hey, you know nobody's chasing us". The most powerful and poignant song is the closer "Nora". "Now I don't feel she feels the same way about me. She wonders if I will ever be who she dreamed I'd be. But she never says "I love you" til I say "I love you". Like we're exchanging hostages". Wow. 

     While I enjoy the Roderick on the Line podcast, I wish Roderick would finish his next album. I also hope he puts out a 20th anniversary vinyl reissue of When I Pretend to Fall next year. I'm going to attach the video for "Blue Diamonds", but it has a bunch of exposition at the beginning, so you may want to skip the first part. Peace.