by The Brave Little Abacus
Released May 29, 2010
Reviewed May 28, 2020
Top tracks (based on community voting)
Please Don’t Cry They Stopped Hours Ago (20%), Pile! No Pile! Pile! (18%), Can’t Run Away (18%)
Did someone say twinkly math rock? While this slightly overused (and fairly vague) phrase may not be a totally inaccurate description of The Brave Little Abacus’ second and final album, it doesn’t quite explain how it sits at the top of its class and stretches its reach far beyond. Indisputably chaotic, Just Got Back from the Discomfort—We’re Alright consistently teeters between meticulously refined and intensely raw, as pummeling sections that fuse elements of emo and post-hardcore often fracture into more dreamy, well-orchestrated, bits of ambience – and vice versa – at a moment’s notice. This all takes place as vocalist Adam Demirijan’s vocals bounce from impassioned screams to frantic spoken word, delivering lyrics riddled with frustration, anxiety, and raw, unfiltered emotion. If emo as a genre is meant to capture human emotion – particularly in regards to those relating to self-doubt and inadequacy – in their rawest forms, Just Got Back From the Discomfort—We’re Alright might just be the peak of it. – Dominick (10/10)
Just Got Back from the Discomfort packages the intense contradictions of the human condition into one of music’s most intense moments. Though we wish to plan everything and to have everything go exactly the way we picture, the fragility and unpredictability of life always manages to throw a monkey wrench into it. What matters is how we deal with these dilemmas, and The Brave Little Abacus showcases that with one of the most genuine records ever made. All the frustration, angst, and disaster is always counterpointed by dreamlike escapism and it embodies being a human unlike any other record out there. – Jared (10/10)
Cam: 10/10 | Dominick: 10/10 | Jared: 10/10 | Hadley: 9.5/10 | Enth: 8.8/10
