The Twilight Sad : Here, It Never Snowed. Afterwards, It Did

<img src="http://www.qromag.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/thetwilightsadhereitnever.jpg" alt=" " />The Twilight Sad get ready for the summer with a digital mini-album of reworkings and a few new pieces, <i>Here, It Never Snowed. Afterwards, It...
7.5 FatCat
2008 

  The Scottish foursome really arrived with last year’s debut full-length, Fourteen Autumns and Fifteen Winters (QRO review), a piece of epic post-rock that managed to depict the sadness of the overlooked-upon nature of the young.  They even managed to cross the shores for a headlining tour of the States, as well as appearing at Village Voice‘s Siren Music Festival (QRO recap).  In the midst of writing their follow-up, the band releases four alternate versions of Autumnal tracks, along with one original and one cover.  Compiled in the digital-only release Here, It Never Snowed. Afterwards It Did, The Twilight Sad do some nice, interesting things with their sound.

Like Autums, Never Snowed opens with "And She Would Darken the Memory".  It is more stripped than the original, less of a grand overwhelm than a haunting recollection, but this "Darken" still doesn’t quite meet the original, as singer James Graham’s vocals don’t match the instrumentation as well.  A better tact is taken on "Cold Days From the Birdhouse", as The Twilight Sad go orchestral, with strings from My Latest Novel’s Laura McFarlane; higher and prettier, it’s a new ride, and a nice new aspect of the band.  On the back half of the mini-album, The Twilight Sad exceed two of the somewhat weaker tracks on Autumns.  "Mapped By What Surrounded Them" takes the orchestral spin of "Cold Days" and echoing nature of "Darken" on Never Snowed, and holds up better than the original, thanks to its more heartfelt nature.  "Walking For Two Hours", meanwhile, is just bigger and bolder, in both its light and dark sections, thanks to the strings, but also prettier and even cleaner.

Never Snowed also features one brand-new original in its title track.  Like the preceding "Cold Days", "Here, It Never Snowed. Afterwards, It Did" is a bit higher than previous Twilight Sad, even somewhat ‘summer-y’ (or at least ‘springtime-y’), despite its name.  And the release ends on a big, echoing coda, with the band’s evocative and presonalized cover of Daniel Johnston’s "Some Things Last a Long Time".

With its long, epic tracks, post-rock lends itself to ‘mini-albums’, and it seems British post-rock in particular, given iLIKETRAiNS’ Progress/Reform (QRO review).  While not a marked departure from the sound The Twilight Sad delivered on Fourteen Autumns, Here, It Never Snowed. Afterwards It Did definitely shows growth that is sure to pay off with their next full-length.

MP3 Stream: "Here, It Never Snowed. Afterwards It Did."

{audio}/mp3/files/The Twilight Sad – Here It Never Snowed Afterwards It Did.mp3{/audio}

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