Tag Archives: source tags & codes

#1109: …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead – Relative Ways

Leave a reply

So I guess that around May/June time will be 10 years since I first listened to Source Tags & Codes, the 2002 album by …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead. The album got the rare 10 rating on Pitchfork, a decision the publication even questioned themselves in the review for the next record the band made. But me being the Pitchfork-head I was a decade ago thought the album had to be really good, one-of-a-kind, if they gave it a 10. And, yeah, I was fully convinced on that first listen. The songs are dramatic, sometimes enchanting and mysterious, sometimes melodic, sometimes noisy… feelings and dynamic vary all across the spectrum. The band had three songwriters, and their personalities showed in the respective tracks they sing lead vocals on. I liked that aspect too.

Yet, with all that being said, it’s not an album I really seek to listen to in full these days. Been like that for a while, actually. I guess it just tapped into attitudes that the 19-year-old person I was had that the soon-to-be 29-year-old probably lost along the way. It’s a sad thing, to be sure. That doesn’t stop the fact that there are some great songs on there. Two of them I’ve already written about, I think they’re just timeless, and ‘Relative Ways’ is the third and final one from the album and by the band that’ll get a post on this place. I swear, it’s a coincidence that the three songs I like the most from the record are sung by guitarist Conrad Kelly. I would suggest ‘Heart in the Hand of the Matter‘ if you want to hear a song by drummer Jason Reece, or ‘Baudelaire’ by former bass player Neil Busch to get other perspectives. But I guess it’s Kelly’s work that left the largest impression.

‘Relative Ways’ marks the start of the reflective final leg of Source Tags…, which comes to an end with the emphatic title track closer, and, to me, it seems to be a case of a song that’s about the process of writing a song. Kelly expresses his difficulties in trying to sum up what he wants to say, what with literally everything that happens in the world, either naturally or manmade, but finds solace in that whatever happens will happen and it will all come together eventually. It could take a lifetime, or a couple of days, but the ideas will form and something will come out of it. I guess it must be rather frustrating being a person whose job it is to write songs but to feel like anything you try to compose is terrible, and Kelly envisions a saint coming down from the heavens to forgive for any mistakes he’s made that’ll help him to carry on. So overall, it’s a very optimistic song about letting things happen and self-forgiveness. It’s awesome, really. Moments I enjoy: The switch-up between 3/4 and 4/4 time in the instrumental breaks, Kelly’s shouting vocals for the song’s second half and how the guitars drown out his voice in the tension-building section near the end. Makes for some good, good listening.

#650: …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead – It Was There That I Saw You

1 Reply

‘It Was There That I Saw You’, the (almost) opener of Trail of Dead’s 2002 album Source Tags & Codes still gets me pumped today. I listened to the full album for the first time about five years ago and ended up pleasantly surprised by the entire thing. There’s this grand mystical vibe that the music and lyrics give out throughout which some may find pretentious but I found bearable at least.

But ‘I Was There’ starts it all off with this calming introduction that suddenly explodes into a ball of energy with crashing drums and exhilarating guitar work. It is during this moment that singer Conrad Keely comes into frame singing about the time he became enamoured by someone (I’ll assume a lady) and had some great times with her before eventually losing touch. He is left wondering what he has been up to in the time that have been apart.

It’s endearing stuff. But then the fast music suddenly stops and transitions into this slow breakdown – with a melody taken from the preceding track ‘Invocation’ – that builds and builds in intensity, repeating that melody endlessly before transitioning back into the fast music you were hearing almost two minutes ago. Ahhh… it feels so good when that happens. You can experience it too!

It’s a dynamic track that pulls and pushes and takes a few turns here and there. It’s an exciting listen. It’s a great album, I say.

My iPod #548: …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead – How Near, How Far

1 Reply

Source Tags & Codes, the third album by post-hardcore band …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead, once received a perfect 10 from notable music critics Pitchfork upon its initial release in 2002. Many to this day discuss whether it deserved the score. Thinking about it a year from when I first heard it, I’m still not so sure myself. Though I can confirm that it is a glorious one. I like it quite a bit. Well worth fifty minutes of your time. You may have some preconceived ideas about the music just from the band’s name (I know I did) but you will be pleasantly surprised by the album’s quality.

The track, stemming from an idea that singer Conrad Keely had written three years before, depicts a narrator who wishes to know more about history. Entranced by ‘oil painted eyes of muses left behind’ he wants to learn about the subjects of these paintings but is ‘left dry’ that he will never be able to know the full truth, learning only what he can read in books and stories. The track contains only three verses with no distinct chorus, though the highlight for me is the instrumental break. It begins with alternating violins and guitars, before slowly building in intensity as the song’s captivating introductory riff plays and plays with Keely repeatedly singing “How near, how far/How lost they are” before seamlessly transitioning into the song’s final verse.

“How Near, How Far” quickly grew to become one of my favourites from it. It was maybe a week after listening to the full album when I was in visiting my friend in Manchester last year. I stepped outside after having partied for many hours at the university’s student union building to a sky of pink and red made by the rising of the sun. Everything from the leaves on the trees to the cars on the road had a vibrant glow. It was a sight to behold, too much to take in. I suddenly found myself humming “How Near” to myself, it just seemed like the perfect song at that moment.