Semisonic
Feeling Strangely Fine (MCA)
by Marc Hirsh
Semisonic
Feeling Strangely Fine (MCA)
by Marc Hirsh
originally published in Space City Rock, Spring 1999
It's a sad fact that just about all albums, movies, books, etc., are judged not on the basis of how good they are but how they stack up to previous efforts (e.g., Odelay gets tagged a work of genius mostly because we didn't think Beck had it in him). So it goes with Semisonic, only they get the short end of the stick this time. Their debut Great Divide was a perfect pop album of the highest order, filled with exciting words, melodies, performances and production that combined into one shimmering crystalline whole. Feeling Strangely Fine can't help but pale by comparison.
And it does. Good songs (the already overplayed "Closing Time," the sensuous foreplay of "Completely Pleased," the deliberate "Never You Mind") just sit there and lead nowhere. Toying with the formula of Divide was the big mistake: unlike Divide producer Paul Fox, Nick Launay doesn't seem to have an instinctive feel for the ups and downs of the band. Worse, singer/guitarist Dan Wilson relieves himself of some of his duties, handing off guitar chores to bassist John Munson or brother Matt and allowing his bandmates to write songs. A more egalitarian tack, sure, but it's also sloppy; with its sense of singular focus (missing here), Divide was totally unhinged but vice-grip tight.
If you're ignorant of Divide, you can safely forget all of the above and probably enjoy Feeling just fine. You can enjoy Munson and drummer Jake Slichter's creative rhythm section, appreciate the rather poetic and evocative lyrics and marvel in Dan Wilson's farming unabashed romanticism in a climate of too-too-ironic cynicism. But you will be missing out.