doug martsch, will you be my favourite uncle? please?

I'm not much of a music reviewer. In fact I'm not much good at reviewing any sort of art, be it music, visual art, film, performance art, comics, theatre, etc. etc.

All I know is what I know.
All I know is what I love.
All I know is that feeling when my internal organs leap somersaults of happiness.
All I know is what I can and do truely engage with.

When you're stood at a gig and you forget to notice that your back aches from standing so long. When you're not drifting off and thinking about whether you left the oven on. You've got cheek ache from smiling as the band in front of you launches into another one of you all-time favourite songs. You see people in the crowd turning around and beaming at the people they came with as the opening chords to their favourite songs start up, and you can't help but join in the smile too. When you have a huge feeling of contentment and happiness and solidarity and *joy*. When you no longer feel self-conscious about going to the gig on your own because the band make you feel like you belong. When you're in your favourite tiny gig venue and it feels like you're at home in your bedroom dancing to your favourite songs. When the band seem so happy to be there. When the band love the venue and criticise all the bleedin' carling academy venues in this country. When you hear songs that bring back such fond memories and then forge brand new ones of you and the band and *this*. When the first note of a song makes you open your otherwise shy and timid mouth and sing along loudly. When tracks from all the bands albums are played with the same enthusiasm as the last. When nobody in the crowd is annoying you because you hardly notice anybody else is there. When nobody in the crowd is annoying you cuz they're clapping in applause, and dancing along, in time with you too. When you realise that half the band have facial hair that you're jealous of. When you never knew how joyful it was to hear the word 'brontosaurus' sung live. When the drums and the bass are so familiar that your body reacts to them instinctively, without restriction, without hesiataion, without thinking, by passionatley moving your head in response. When this live experience overtakes and overshadows every other time you'd seen the band. When this gig overtakes every other gig you've seen this year.

Built To Spill. I adore you.
That's what I know.