Manchester Orchestra - The Million Masks of God (April 30, 2021) Album • Page 165

You only get the super special thing in your deluxe if you thank the band

 

more like whole paycheck

 

I gotta say, it's a perfectly chilly, rainy day here in Buffalo. You really could not ask for a better vibe for the album.

 

That variant is nice.

 

That looks sick.

 

I really love that packaging.

 

TRACK BY TRACK BY ME (WHO GIVES A FUCK)

1. Inaudible

somebody said it was like The Maze on steroids and I agree. not blown away, but I like the lyrics a lot from what I could hear. On first past it’s the weakest opener aside from whatever the opener to Cope was probably

2. Angel of Death

I love everything about this song. All the weird little sounds and the verses especially are so groovy and cool. This definitely feels like it connects to Keel Timing and Bed Head and I really hope the rest of the album sounds like this (I heard it doesn’t)

3. Keel Timing

I’ve loved this since I first heard it. “I’m a dog, you’re the cops” feels so Bad Books 1 which is one of the best fucking albums of all time. If they hadn’t released this right after Bed Head I don’t think I would have disliked the repeating melody so much.

4. Bed Head

very fuckable song. Idk what they did with the mix here where other tracks can seem muddled by the fuckton of layers, but everything breathes really well here. what a fantastic 3 song run though

5. Annie

okay nobody told me this slapped like this. let’s see what the vocals do... feels like a familiar Manchester thing but with all the fixings of this record. I get what they mean when they it’s a sibling record to ABMTTS (which I’ve grown to love even though I didn’t care for it initially) a lot of these songs really show what Andy and Tim have brought to this band which is a whole fucking lot, but this one especially. Just got to the ending of the song. I give the beginning and end an 8/10 and the middle like a 6/10

6. Telepath

ok this feels a lot better in context of the album for sure. Andy is great at writing beautiful songs like this and it’s like they got Andy Tim and Rob to play on a RAGC song. I’ve heard this is the turning point to where it gets a lot softer and it so RIP to a kickin side A

7. Let It Storm

another acoustic guitar?? More like Let It Bore-m am I right? I meant that as a joke but honestly this song is actually kind of boring. “I don’t wanna hold back my faith anymore” bleh

8. Dinosaur

I hope this is about Jurassic Park. My dad worked on that movie.... alright it started feeling like a METN song and then turned into something totally different. This has been my favorite since that 3 song run at the begging. really like the melodies on this one, especially the “over and over” stuff. fucking Prince absolutely MURDERING THE BASS wtf he’s so good. This song is definitely top 5

9. Obstacle

So cool they put Andy Demos on here... just kidding, but I just feel like I’ve heard so much acoustic stuff from them. This is kind of another Telepath. though it does get a little fuzzy later! definitely don’t hate it but nothing stands out too much on first listen. Favorite part was the last 20 seconds so maybe I’ll like it more on repeat listens

10. Way Back

coooool more acoustic guitar. this again feels like a RAGC captain song stuffed through the glowing orb on TMMOG cover. But!! I think this one works more than Telepath and definitely works more than Obstacle actually I like this song a lot. Out of all the acoustic guitar songs so far, this is #1. Ok I judged it too early... The Internet has to blow me away or this is the 5th best song on the record

11. The Internet

The Silence called it wants its’ intro back. Jk but yeah. Not that impressed with this one.

anyway this is at least tied with Black Mile as my 4th fav ManOrch record and it’s 10x better than what most bands will ever do. Good job boys

 

Okay, so a few thoughts track by track.

Inaudible
[Spoilers]Not super massive on the lyrics on the first verse. The rhyming feels kinda goofy, but the lyrics in the rest of the song are fantastic. Instrumentally it's flawless and epic though. The build and climax at 2 minutes is sure orgasm. The prog nerd in me also loves the sparse mellotron throughout. Also the sections with Mayzie talking are adorable.[/Spoilers]

Angel of Death
[Spoilers]Maybe my favorite song? Every single melody is so fucking amazing, the lyrics are top tier, especially "I'm alive, but it isn't the same as before". Lots of little melodies and bits to love in this and the composition is really, really creative. Love the callback to The Mistake at 4:26.[/Spoilers]

Keel Timing
[Spoilers] This song has really grown on me. I've found myself oddly singing this song under my breath the most so far. I will also only ever heard "Little more, little more, he is Biden." [/Spoilers]

Bed Head
[Spoilers] This album's The Gold. I expect to hear this on the radio a fair bit, although maybe not as much. The lyrics don't have the same easy relatability as The Gold and it isn't as melodically or structurally straightforward. It'll be on alt stations for sure alone with maybe Keel Timing, but it won't have quite the same crossover I don't think. [/Spoiler]

Annie
My second favorite behind AoD. I feel like this one will be slept on at first because AoD and Dinosaur are more epic, but this one is a simple beautiful track. The main guitar riff is sick and kinda reminds me of Zelda 2's dungeon theme a bit. More motif work from The Mistake/AoD. I love all the layers like the piano and all the thick caked on vocals. Again, a simple track, but a great one.
Telepath
Tearjerking lyrics and great instrumentation as on all of the songs, probably would've been my pick for a second single. I love LOVE the keychange and Brother Bird's backing vocals. I'm really not looking forward to everyone comparing this to Phoebe Bridger's tho.
Let It Storm
My least favorite on the album mainly because it takes the subtle religious themes on the original album that were more hinted at and pretty explicitetly states them. I prefer the subtle approach and more reserved introspection from ABMttS, but maybe I just haven't fully rediscovered my faith yet idk.
Dinosaur
Here's one of the big ones, rivals Annie as my second favorite. The climax of this track is legendary, but the way it dies down hurts the vibe a bit. I wish they really let go. I love the toying with time signatures tho, that's something I've always appreciated about them. I could also almost see this song on MEtN.
Obstacle
Another solid chill track here. Strong Hope vibes with some really sick drumming to go along with it. Not much to say about this that I haven't said before.
Way Back
Love the finger picking and the chorus is SUPER catchy for being just two words.
The Internet
Me: Mom, I want The Silence
Mom: We have The Silence at home
The Silence at home:

Jokes aside, I was a bit underwhelmed by this at first, but it's grown on me a lot. I loved how they had the second part to Mayzie and Andy reading The Boy Who Cried Wolf at the end there. I feel like it definitely ties into the themes of the album, I just need to figure out what those are.
In all I'd give it a 9/10 at the moment with that likely becoming a 10 the more I listen to it. It's a lot to take in and I need to remind myself that I wasn't insane about ABMttS on my first listen. Not favorite album of all time insane like I am now at least.

Great release and a suitable follow up to Black Mile.

 

angel of death easily one of the best songs they've ever created good lord. and inaudible isn't far behind it. what a freaking 1-2 punch

 

Okay, hot take. Top Notch is their second best opening track.

 

At this point, I think I prefer the more muscular first half, but only very slightly. The back half of this album is absolutely gorgeous.

 

Gotta say I agree. Angel through Bed head is the closest we have to an Alien through Grocery on this album.

 

honestly I forgot the opening track was Top Notch, which is the best song on Cope, but still the worst opening track I think. Wolves at Night, The Only One and Deer are all better.

edit: I’m dumb and realized you were giving your opinion and not telling me my take was hot. What’s your 1st fav??

 

im excited to listen to this tomorrow

 

Cope is the best song on Cope

 

it's true

 

First fave has to be Wolves at Night easily.

Wolves > Top Notch (Cope) > The Only One > The Maze > Inaudible > Top Notch (Hope) > Deer

I do love Hope more than Cope, but I feel like the Hope version of TN is one of the weaker tracks comparatively.

 

Every Stone

 

If you're saying Every Stone is weaker on Hope, you're absolutely wrong.

 

top notch is their second best opener and the second best song on cope

 

WAT?

 

Every Stone is my favourite on Cope