Like any good story about how you discover a band, my first taste of The Academy Is... came after a friend of mine put them on a mixtape cd for me. The song in question was "Checkmarks" and I found myself going to back to that song more than the others on that mix cd.
I'm actually not sure how I came across Almost Here, but a part of me thinks I actually went to Target and bought it. What captured me was how young, yet mature it sounded. Lyrics like "you kiss me like an overdramatic actor, starving for work, with one last shot to make it happen" made me take notice. During my time with it, I would come across certain songs that are still favorites to this day.
"Black Mamba" is a cool song with an attitude, "Slow Down" was the first music video I saw for them where I was shocked at just how skinny William Beckett was (I wanted to get him some food), and "The Phrase That Pays" is a song that is kind of told in story mode. One time I was on the radio and said I was going to play some TAI and someone called in and said he loved them and I told them I was going to play Phrase and he said thanks. That was pretty cool.
So here are some tracks from Almost Here, but don't leave just yet...
BONUS
Almost Here is the cd that gets on the countdown, but since this is the only time that TAI appears, I have to give love to there are other releases that if I was doing a top 100 would definitely be on there.
From the album Santi:
From the album Fast Times at Barrington High
From the EP Lost in Pacific Time
Good band.
ReplyDeleteYou were right, I appreciate this post mucho... I've seen them 3 times in concert and they get better every time. At various concerts we met the band, then at Warped we talked to Butcher for a while.
ReplyDeleteIn fact I'm looking at my Academy Is poster right now. I always go back and forth whether Almost Here or Santi is my favorite cd. But my favorite song, and the song that really got me into them was Down and Out. Something about that song just gets me.
But you know I approve of this pick.
Wow-- ok so far, this is the only band/album I have never heard of. *golf claps and fist pumps, yo*
ReplyDeleteVery cool. I don't know if they'd be a band I'd be super into, but once in awhile it'd be cool. :)
I have never heard of this band - but cheers to mixed tapes (or CDs)
ReplyDeletei love "neighbors" :)
ReplyDeleteNever heard of these guys! I couldn't listen to the first song you posted because the owner of the video blocked my country from viewing it or something.. I have no idea.
ReplyDeleteBut good post. (: I like this band.