- Record Label: Sister's Den
- Release Date: Sep 29, 2009
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Why There Are Mountains ends up being like any great result of wanderlust--here, the journey is the end not the means; fortunately, that gives Why There Are Mountains astounding replay value.
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He’s certainly not the first kid to see the death of innocence in a “maelstrom of mail-order Marlboro memorabilia,” but he might be the first to sing about it--here’s hoping that future Cymbals Eat Guitars songs wrap such observations in similarly singular packaging.
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Alternative PressThese clattering seat-inducers plow through both rational song lengths and all hopes of a settling conclusion. [Oct 2009, p.110]
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Although Joe has now reverted to the boring D’Agostino, the feral noise-pop his band creates is as vicious as ever.
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You could accuse Cymbals Eat Guitars of being derivative, but the idea is that all of these influences are broken down to component parts and then reassembled into something different. Some of the pieces are still recognisable, others disguised or twisted.
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The sprawling complexity of Why There Are Mountains shows a remarkable balance between patience (the half-minute opening to 'Indiana') and an ADHD-like lack of adherence to staying on one track (everywhere, really, but especially 'Wind Phoenix').
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CEG's debut mined the quintessentially American wells of 90s alt-rock and road-trip imagery to create one of the best first albums of 2009.
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Cymbals Eat Guitars don’t get drowned in homage, however; from the first explosive note to the last, Why There Are Mountains is a routinely rewarding album, with each listen revealing great new scenery.
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The good news is that Why There Are Mountains is polished and offers some strong songwriting while still leaving the band enough room to grow into something better.
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Why There Are Mountains is plain pleasing indie rock--how it used to be, how it’s ceased to be since, at least in spirit.
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Never judge a book by its cover, they say, but with Cymbals Eat Guitars it's fine to do just that--the lush green grass and dense vegetation of their own artwork accurately reflected in their own music.