I’m fairly certain many readers’ first introduction to Built to Spill is from their inevitable Modest Mouse Pandora playlist from freshman year of college. This is unfortunate only because they really should have been listening to BtS earlier. The Boise, Idaho legends helped pioneer that familiar “Northwest Sound” of the mid-’90s and continue to echo in the halls of eternity (or whatever) through every music snob’s favorite combination: critical adoration and general lack of public awareness. Their backdoor influence has spread so far that most of the “Seth Cohen indie” of yore was essentially lesser bands aping different aspects of their sound.
Madison will be graced with their holy presence tomorrow night at the Barrymore Theatre. Here are some essentials to prep you for a night of elbow-rubbing with cool dads:
“Carry the Zero”
This is arguably the best song I’ve ever heard. The lyrics! The build! The drop! (just kidding …sheesh) The second track off their 1999 LP, Keep It Like a Secret, it has the perfect mix of specificity and vagueness to feel like they may have written this song about a deteriorating relationship for you. It’s the right amount of sad to feel sympathized with, but compounded by sweet, sweet catharsis. In my experience, it has a 100 percent success rate of turning people into Built to Spill fans.
“Randy Described Eternity”
The origin of this song is debated (quoted from college professor, quoted from friend at church camp, quoted via direct communication with God…), but the song details what is apparently a fairly common Christian way of describing eternity: wearing down a large object with the brush of a feather to the size of a pea. The song is neither condemnation nor endorsement, and the rangy, elusive guitar underscores this ambivalence beautifully.
“Car”
Definitely from the era when everyone sounded kind of like Pavement, but there’s way too much upfront emotional investment for it to be considered a credible knockoff. This song is a great reminder of why everyone always holds a soft spot for an artist’s early work: the jangly earnestness is so unjaded, it’s utterly contagious.
“Velvet Waltz”
A long burning epic for the ages. Off what many regard as their magnum opus (Perfect from Now On), it has more of the signature evocative and relatable relationship lyrics. Its lush and wavering guitars provide the ideal backdrop to elevate this to the crowning achievement of one of the ’90s best albums.