On My Way to Absence
Encyclopedia
On My Way to Absence is Damien Jurado
's sixth full-length album. It was released in 2005 and was Jurado's second release on Secretly Canadian records
. The album was produced by his frequent collaborator Eric Fisher. Jurado has referred to the album as "a tribute to jealousy".
combines "lush strings", a "quiet acoustic guitar strum and gentle piano".
. The track is "gentle, almost like a lullaby" and is comparable to "Matinee" from Jurado's preceding LP, Where Shall You Take Me?
.
, keyboards
, and samples
" with "quivering strings" and "melancholic understate[d]" vocals to create one of the most optimistic tracks on the album.
, particularly the tracks "The Tragedy" and "Honey Baby". He sings the "apathetic" vocals with "coarser" and "more forceful" vocals to a "dreamy haze of piano [and] guitar".
lead singer Eric Bachmann
provides backing vocals on this "smoldering rock" track that sounds like it belongs on Jason Molina's Songs: Ohia
.
and Crazy Horse
, a "raw", "stripped-down and melancholy rock" tune with an alt-country
feel. The "bombastic" track would fit in on Trials & Errors
from Secretly Canadian labelmate Magnolia Electric Co. and breaks up the album's "folkier elements" "with bells and strings, minimal piano and brushed drums".
favorably compares Jurado to Nick Drake
, Iron & Wine
, Cat Power
and Elliott Smith
. Brian Howe of Pitchfork
writes that "while it isn't Jurado's most daring work, it is among his most immediately engaging" and refers to the album's melody as "rich, fragrant and utterly human". The songs "resonate with the verbal economy and hallucinatory clarity", Howe compares them to the short stories
of Raymond Carver
. Greg Elias of The Good 5 Cent Cigar
calls the album "more of a pop album than anything he has done" and "a testament to his ability to maintain artistic integrity in constantly shifting atmospheres" proclaiming that Jurado is "among the best songwriters of his time and ilk". Peter Funk of Stylus
calls the album Jurado's "saddest though finest efforts to date". Uncut
calls On My Way to Absence a "self-styled tribute to jealousy" and his "most diverse record yet". However, Reed Fischer from CMJ New Music Monthly
writes that Jurado's "detachment is effective about half the time, [but] it breeds indifference" and that the "superb" guest vocals from Rosie Thomas and Eric Bachmann "aren't enough to cobble together the king of compelling, sympathetic portrait he's more than capable of painting".
Damien Jurado
Damien Jurado is an American indie rock singer/songwriter from Seattle, Washington. Over the years he has released albums on many labels; today, his primary label is Secretly Canadian.-Music career:...
's sixth full-length album. It was released in 2005 and was Jurado's second release on Secretly Canadian records
Secretly Canadian
Secretly Canadian is an American independent record label based in Bloomington, Indiana. It was started in 1996 by Chris and Ben Swanson, Eric Weddle, and Jonathan Cargill. Their first release was a re-issue of an album by June Panic...
. The album was produced by his frequent collaborator Eric Fisher. Jurado has referred to the album as "a tribute to jealousy".
"White Center"
In the album's opening track, "White Center", Jurado's barely comprehensible vocal slur tells a tale of small town murder. The instrumentationInstrumentation (music)
In music, instrumentation refers to the particular combination of musical instruments employed in a composition, and to the properties of those instruments individually...
combines "lush strings", a "quiet acoustic guitar strum and gentle piano".
"Lottery"
"Lottery" features backing vocals by Rosie ThomasRosie Thomas
Rosie Thomas is an American singer-songwriter, originally from Michigan. It was through mutual friends that she met Trey Many and began playing shows with Velour 100. They recorded one EP together and played a few short tours, where she met Damien Jurado and Pedro the Lion...
. The track is "gentle, almost like a lullaby" and is comparable to "Matinee" from Jurado's preceding LP, Where Shall You Take Me?
Where Shall You Take Me?
Where Shall You Take Me? is a 2003 album from Indie rock musician Damien Jurado.It was released on March 18, 2003 and was produced by Eric Fisher...
.
"Big Decision"
"Big Decision" combines "minimal electronicsElectronic musical instrument
An electronic musical instrument is a musical instrument that produces its sounds using electronics. Such an instrument sounds by outputting an electrical audio signal that ultimately drives a loudspeaker....
, keyboards
Electronic keyboard
An electronic keyboard is an electronic or digital keyboard instrument.The major components of a typical modern electronic keyboard are:...
, and samples
Sampling (music)
In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...
" with "quivering strings" and "melancholic understate[d]" vocals to create one of the most optimistic tracks on the album.
"Lion Tamer"
"Lion Tamer" is reminiscent of his 1999 LP Rehearsals for DepartureRehearsals for Departure
Rehearsals for Departure is Damien Jurado's second album. It was released in March 1999 on the Sub Pop label. Joe Heim of Salon gave the album a very favorable review, praising its melancholy themes.- Track listing :# "Ohio"# "The Tragedy"...
, particularly the tracks "The Tragedy" and "Honey Baby". He sings the "apathetic" vocals with "coarser" and "more forceful" vocals to a "dreamy haze of piano [and] guitar".
"Fuel"
The "stripped-down and melancholy" rock tune "Fuel" is the dark confessional of a "merciless small-town killer"."Simple Hello"
Crooked FingersCrooked Fingers
Crooked Fingers is a North Carolina band led by former Archers of Loaf lead singer Eric Bachmann. The band was previously based in Seattle, Washington and Atlanta, Georgia before moving to Denver. The band released albums on WARM Records and Merge Records before going completely independent in 2008...
lead singer Eric Bachmann
Eric Bachmann
Eric Bachmann is an American musician/producer who is currently the lead singer of Crooked Fingers and the Archers of Loaf. He hails from North Carolina and Florida, but currently lives in Athens, Georgia. His first solo effort, Short Careers was recorded as a score to the film "Ball of Wax."Saddle...
provides backing vocals on this "smoldering rock" track that sounds like it belongs on Jason Molina's Songs: Ohia
Songs: Ohia (album)
Songs: Ohia is the first album by Songs: Ohia. It was released by Secretly Canadian on April 1, 1997.-Track listing:All songs written by Jason Molina...
.
"Sucker"
Like "Lion Tamer", "Sucker" sounds like the material from Rehearsals for Departure. The folk-rock track is "upbeat" and "poppy"."I Am the Mountain"
"I Am the Mountain" is a reworking of the track from his 2004 EP, Just in Time for Something. It is reminiscent of Neil YoungNeil Young
Neil Percival Young, OC, OM is a Canadian singer-songwriter who is widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of his generation...
and Crazy Horse
Crazy Horse (band)
Crazy Horse is an American rock band best known for its association with Neil Young. It has been co-credited on a number of albums throughout Young's career and has released five albums of its own.-Early years:...
, a "raw", "stripped-down and melancholy rock" tune with an alt-country
Alternative country
Alternative country is a loosely defined sub-genre of country music, which includes acts that differ significantly in style from mainstream or pop country music...
feel. The "bombastic" track would fit in on Trials & Errors
Trials & Errors
Trials & Errors is a live album released by the Magnolia Electric Co. on Secretly Canadian in 2005, recorded on April 16, 2003 at Club Ancienne Belgique in Brussels....
from Secretly Canadian labelmate Magnolia Electric Co. and breaks up the album's "folkier elements" "with bells and strings, minimal piano and brushed drums".
"Night Out for the Downer"
"Night Out for the Downer" is another reworking of a Just in Time for Something track."A Jealous Heart Is a Heavy Heart"
The album concludes with a tale of "sunken relationships and thwarted dreams", "A Jealous Heart Is a Heavy Heart". The tune features "violin, electric guitar, and the echo of distantly otherworld keyboard noise" then it, and the album, "fade into oblivion" with "a lonely piano coda and a desperate plea" to 'Grow old with me'.Reception
In his review of On My Way to Absence Todd Martens of BillboardBillboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
favorably compares Jurado to Nick Drake
Nick Drake
Nicholas Rodney "Nick" Drake was an English singer-songwriter and musician. Though he is best known for his sombre guitar based songs, Drake was also proficient at piano, clarinet and saxophone...
, Iron & Wine
Iron & Wine
Samuel Beam , better known by his stage and recording name Iron & Wine, is an American singer-songwriter. He has released four studio albums, several EPs and singles, as well as a few download-only releases, which include a live album...
, Cat Power
Cat Power
Charlyn Marie Marshall , also known as Chan Marshall or by her stage name Cat Power, is an American singer/songwriter and occasional actress and model. Cat Power was originally the name of Marshall's first band, but has come to refer to her musical projects with various backing bands...
and Elliott Smith
Elliott Smith
Steven Paul "Elliott" Smith was an American singer-songwriter and musician. Smith was born in Omaha, Nebraska, raised primarily in Texas, and resided for a significant portion of his life in Portland, Oregon, where he first gained popularity...
. Brian Howe of Pitchfork
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
writes that "while it isn't Jurado's most daring work, it is among his most immediately engaging" and refers to the album's melody as "rich, fragrant and utterly human". The songs "resonate with the verbal economy and hallucinatory clarity", Howe compares them to the short stories
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
of Raymond Carver
Raymond Carver
Raymond Clevie Carver, Jr. was an American short story writer and poet. Carver is considered a major American writer of the late 20th century and also a major force in the revitalization of the short story in the 1980s....
. Greg Elias of The Good 5 Cent Cigar
The Good 5 Cent Cigar
The Good Five-Cent Cigar is a daily, student-run newspaper for the University of Rhode Island campus. The paper provides the university community with information regarding on-campus issues and events, as well as providing world news...
calls the album "more of a pop album than anything he has done" and "a testament to his ability to maintain artistic integrity in constantly shifting atmospheres" proclaiming that Jurado is "among the best songwriters of his time and ilk". Peter Funk of Stylus
Stylus Magazine
Stylus Magazine was an online music and film magazine launched in 2002. It featured long-form music journalism, four daily music reviews, movie reviews, a number of different podcasts, an MP3 blog, and a text blog....
calls the album Jurado's "saddest though finest efforts to date". Uncut
UNCUT (magazine)
Uncut magazine, trademarked as UNCUT, is a monthly publication based in London. It is available across the English-speaking world, and focuses on music, but also includes film and books sections...
calls On My Way to Absence a "self-styled tribute to jealousy" and his "most diverse record yet". However, Reed Fischer from CMJ New Music Monthly
CMJ New Music Monthly
CMJ New Music Monthly was a monthly music magazine with interviews, reviews, and special features. Each issue included a compact disc with 15 to 24 songs by well established bands, unsigned bands, and everything in between...
writes that Jurado's "detachment is effective about half the time, [but] it breeds indifference" and that the "superb" guest vocals from Rosie Thomas and Eric Bachmann "aren't enough to cobble together the king of compelling, sympathetic portrait he's more than capable of painting".
Track listing
- "White Center" – 3:04
- "Lottery" – 4:00
- "Big Decision" – 4:32
- "Lion Tamer" – 3:49
- "Fuel" – 2:16
- "Simple Hello" – 3:41
- "Sucker" – 3:17
- "I Am the Mountain" – 3:26
- "Night Out for the Downer" – 4:09
- "Northbound" – 1:38
- "Icicle" – 3:13
- "A Jealous Heart Is a Heavy Heart" – 4:28
Personnel
- Damien JuradoDamien JuradoDamien Jurado is an American indie rock singer/songwriter from Seattle, Washington. Over the years he has released albums on many labels; today, his primary label is Secretly Canadian.-Music career:...
– composerComposerA composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
- Eric BachmannEric BachmannEric Bachmann is an American musician/producer who is currently the lead singer of Crooked Fingers and the Archers of Loaf. He hails from North Carolina and Florida, but currently lives in Athens, Georgia. His first solo effort, Short Careers was recorded as a score to the film "Ball of Wax."Saddle...
– vocals - David Broecker – bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, guitar, radioReceiver (radio)A radio receiver converts signals from a radio antenna to a usable form. It uses electronic filters to separate a wanted radio frequency signal from all other signals, the electronic amplifier increases the level suitable for further processing, and finally recovers the desired information through... - Joel Cuplin – saxophoneSaxophoneThe saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
- Martin FeveyearMartin FeveyearMartin Feveyear is a British record producer and audio engineer based in Seattle, Washington. Beginning as a singer-songwriter and musician, Feveyear soon began recording work for artists in both the UK and US before moving to Seattle at the age of 25. Together with Christian Fulghum , he opened...
– mixingAudio mixing (recorded music)In audio recording, audio mixing is the process by which multiple recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated and effects such as reverb may... - Eric Fisher – audio engineerAudio engineeringAn audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
, audio productionRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, DesignAlbum coverAn album cover is the front of the packaging of a commercially released audio recording product, or album. The term can refer to either the printed cardboard covers typically used to package sets of 10" and 12" 78 rpm records, single and sets of 12" LPs, sets of 45 rpm records , or the front-facing...
, E-Bow, engineer, glockenspielGlockenspielA glockenspiel is a percussion instrument composed of a set of tuned keys arranged in the fashion of the keyboard of a piano. In this way, it is similar to the xylophone; however, the xylophone's bars are made of wood, while the glockenspiel's are metal plates or tubes, and making it a metallophone...
, guitar, keyboardsElectronic keyboardAn electronic keyboard is an electronic or digital keyboard instrument.The major components of a typical modern electronic keyboard are:...
, layout design, mixing, organOrgan (music)The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
, percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
, pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, producer, samplingSampling (music)In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically... - Casey Foubert – percussion, piano
- Troy Glessner – masteringAudio masteringMastering, a form of audio post-production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device ; the source from which all copies will be produced...
- John Golden – bass, piano, vocals
- Josh Golden – piano, vocals
- Rose Johnson – vocals
- Andy Myers – drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, trumpetTrumpetThe trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
, vocals - Rosie ThomasRosie ThomasRosie Thomas is an American singer-songwriter, originally from Michigan. It was through mutual friends that she met Trey Many and began playing shows with Velour 100. They recorded one EP together and played a few short tours, where she met Damien Jurado and Pedro the Lion...
– vocals - Seth Warren – glockenspiel, stringsString instrumentA string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones...
- Justin Wilmore – double bassDouble bassThe double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...