Clair de Lune - Assisted Living

Rating

single starsingle starsingle starsingle star

RIYL

Hot Water Music
Burns Out Bright
icollide

Label

Deep Elm

Tracklist

01. Killjoy
02. Checkers
03. Airplanes
04. Assisted Living
05. Black Heart Charades
06. Catapults
07. I'm A People Person
08. Winning Over Grief And Sorrow
09. XXXX
10. This City Is A Model, But We Are Not Model Citizens
11. Criminal
12. Shadow Companion

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Clair De Lune is a band that forces you to listen to what they are saying, and chances are if you have half an ear for good music you've probably already heard them. If not, then you should know that they make a musical statement, as well as political and social commentaries, that pull no punches. Their latest release on Deep Elm Records is certainly no exception and these Minnesota boys have thrown it all out in the open and have nothing to hide.

Assisted Living starts out right with "Killjoy". This track is a powerful opener that immediately sets the tone for the entire record. The honesty from track to track seems to get more brutal as the album progresses. Along with the honesty, the passion and the dynamics of the album take their own twists and turns that keep you on your toes begging for more. Another thing that this band does particularly well is the built-in sing-along chorus that drives several of their songs.

The pace of this album is something else that really keeps listeners interested. Where many albums these days seem to sound the same track after track, Assisted Living keeps you stimulated with each song and your ears aren’t always being assaulted nor being lulled. While so much of their strength does come through their intelligent lyrics and a strong vocal performance, it is in the 8th track, “Winning Over Grief and Sorrow”, that Clair De Lune shows their versatility and their real strength as musicians that has allowed them to put together such a top notch album. This bands’ ability to shift gears from song to song and effectively execute each in its own way is certainly refreshing.

While this band is one of the few on Deep Elm that is active on that label, it isn’t always the easiest for their bands to keep afloat with the die-hard indie label. But lets hope that Claire De Lune is able to stay at the top of their game and continue putting out great records. If not, then hopefully Deep Elm can provide Claire De Lune with some Assisted Living.

--Brandon Carter

Author

yermaum
Last updated: 09/29/2009 08:59PM

Comments

Jeremy Deal
04/24/2007
07:28AM
Age: 33
I dug this album. I can't say I've listened to it in the last month, mind you, but I gave it quite a few spins for a little while and think it'll probably get some more from me. It appealed to that same part of me that liked Offspring's "Smash" album back in the day. The choruses are very singable with gang vocals to spare.

"These are our lives, but did they ever even matter - are we worth remembering?"
- "Tip The Scales"
Rise Against

cloudscollide
04/24/2007
11:52AM
Age: 24
Location
PA
I used to really like these guys awhile ago but when I listened to the first song on this disc I was so pissed off...I'll have to actually...listen to the rest maybe.

Music Blog.
Depths blog. (my band)

Zach Roth
04/24/2007
01:52PM
Age: 25
Location
Fishers, Indiana
THERE'S A NEW CLAIR DE LUNE?! Shitson!

Top Albums: 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 || Tumblr | Twitter

rustycage
04/24/2007
03:53PM
Age: 32
I remember hearing about these guys a while ago but I don't think I've ever listened to one single song, anyway out of nowhere a coworker said to me today if I've heard a band called Clair De Lune.... maybe it's a sign and I should give this band a try.
the blakible
04/25/2007
05:31PM
Location
Richmond, VA
My band played with Burns Out Bright a few years ago, so it's awesome seeing them in the RIYL. I'll definitely give Clair De Lune a listen!

Tumblr | Band | Twitter

all the way jeremy
04/30/2007
11:38AM
These guys are great friends of mine, and I'm sorry to say they've pretty much called it a day. I don't know that they ever said "broken up" and I see another one off show on their schedule, but they celebrated the release of this record a few weeks ago in Minneapolis and it was also a last hurrah of sorts. Ben, the drummer, is playing with Self-Evident now, Justin, guitar/vocals, is in Centinal, and I've heard possibilities for Tom as well. I'm going to miss them, they were a GREAT live band. This is a fantastic follow up to Marionettes.