Domestica

Not only is this my favorite Cursive record, but it's at the very, very top of my list of favorite and most-important albums of all time.

That's a pretty heavy statement, I know, but I won't back down. This album takes the standard Cursive dynamic (jagged guitars, yelping, screaming, banging, rocking) and takes it away from where it was in their prior releases (somewhat, I think, due to the loss and replacement of Steve Pederson by Ted Stevens). Also, this is the first time that frontman Tim Kasher puts on the 'theme' hat--'Domestica' is, by design, a single story told in parts. It came from a hard time in Tim's life; he had just divorced and stumbled back to Omaha after living on the West Coast. The record reflects both the sense of distance and the pain of his recent troubles and amplifies them into decibels. Before I found this album, no single, complete record had ever grabbed me and sat me down. This one did—from the haunting beginnings of 'The Casualty' to the heart-rending finale 'The Night I Lost the Will to Fight', this record keeps your attention. A feat not easily attained by most artists, but, starting here, a trend in Tim Kasher's work.

Each song on the album is a stand-alone masterpiece. Put them together, and you've got the musical equivalent of a Jack Daniels weekend or a tooth-and-nails lovers spat. Touching and painful, you'll never think of love the same again.

(Also, here's where Tim's writing becomes crisp. 'The Lament of Pretty Baby' horrifies and stuns in its story and flow. Also, the Ted/Tim dynamic has yet to be so amazing: I defy you to find a more poignant musical moment than 'the icicles hang down like prison bars'.)