Rating:
Genre:
Rock
Release Date: 02/23/1999
Perhaps realizing that their time on a major label was likely limited,
Built to Spill made a gutsy choice for
Keep It Like a Secret, their second album for
Warner Brothers. They embraced the sounds of a big studio and focused their sound without sacrificing their fractured
indie rock aesthetic. In a sense, this is
Built to Spill's
pop album: every song is direct and clean, without the long, cerebral jamming that characterized their earlier albums. That's not to say that the album is compromised -- the songwriting may be streamlined, but
Doug Martsch now packs all of his twists, turns, and detours into dense, three-minute blasts. This approach, combined with the shiny sonic textures, makes
Keep It Like a Secret the most immediate and, yes, accessible
Built to Spill record, but they steadfastly open their music up and breathe the way, say,
Pavement did on
Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain or
Brighten the Corners.
Built to Spill still demand that listener meet them on their own terms -- these just happen to be the easiest terms to understand in their catalog.
~Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
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