The Maine - XOXO: From Love and Anxiety In Real Time (July 9, 2021) Album • Page 60

I almost never go back to AC so that is last by default and LLL is first by a mile.

The other two can flip depending on the day, but each has its hits and misses.

 

Need to revisit AC, forgot about it somehow but I remember loving it at the time

 

I still need to actually spend time with their stuff from before You Are OK since I've only listened a couple of times max to them but that's easily my favourite work by the band.

 

Since no one seems to like YAO - what are the duds on that one for you? Cause that's pretty close to LLL for me.

 

I love YAO. Falls off a bit in the back half, but the first couple songs are killer

 

I don't really dislike YOA, it's just my least played of the most recent ones. Tears Won't Cry is one of my least favorite Maine songs ever though.

 

Yeah I think this is also me

 

YOA was a pretty groundbreaking record for them at the time. It’s a little edgier, there’s more tension, bigger swings — just generally trying some new stuff out. A few years out and an album cycle removed, it’s pretty clearly the black sheep of the Maineaissance (lol, I like that term), so it’s understandable why it’s a little more polarizing than the rest

For me personally it can flip flop with American Candy for rankings 2 and 3 depending on the day. I think YOA is the better record, but AC captures their bread and butter in a way only LLL has topped

 

Heh - for the record

 

I don't think YAO is bad, it's just not quite as good as the others and some of the lyrics don't sit quite right with me. And as much as I love "Flowers On the Grave" (the best closer of the bunch) you can really feel that 45 minute runtime by the end, especially compared to the breezy ~35-minutes of the other 3.

 

You Are OK is an album I always enjoy when I listen to it, but it doesn’t have as many favorite songs for me as the other three, so I tend to feel less pull to put it on.

 

This. Added some context.

 

You Are OK is a good record and I respect what they were trying to do. The songs sound incredible from a production standpoint. But it's just not for me - I don't connect with the songs at all, they don't hit that same emotional spot for me that the other work from them has done so consistently. I think they sound sort of generic in a way (to me), not sure if that's the right word but none of them really do anything for me musically or lyrically.

I always have a tough time critiquing albums like this especially from bands I love, since it's so visible how much time and effort is put into them. You Are OK just didn't do it for me and I very rarely go back to it.

 

You are OK
American Candy
Lovely Little Lonely
XOXO

 

I scored a LLL press shortly after the album came out. I missed out on the preorders since I didn't even listen to The Maine before that so they weren't even on my radar. LLL knocked me on my ass out of nowhere. 8123 site had smoke swirl variant out of like 250 or 500 or something and I was able to snag that. I've never listened to it. Glad I have it though!

I liked, not loved AYO so I'm ok with not having that vinyl. XOXO is one I wish I had snagged a vinyl. I'm not paying $70 resell. You live and learn. Waiting on repress there.

LLL > XOX > AYO >>>>>>>>>>>>>> Haven't given must time to the older stuff. I've listened to all the core albums. Nothing that really tickles my fancy.

 

I also grabbed that smoke variant after missing out on the first pressings. Grabbed YAO and XOXO on preorder. Paid a premium (though nowhere near what it goes for now) for AC on eBay a few years ago.

AC
LLL
XOXO
YAO

Really love all four but similar to Craig I just don't find myself drawn to play YAO as much as the others.

Have a soft spot for AC as it's the album that got me into the band and I still think it strikes a great balance between their pop side and their weightier LLL side.

 

Pioneer is their best album

 

I have the pink pressing of AC and the purple pressing of LLL and honestly they are my most prized possessions out of my entire collection

 

I have those same pressings. I bought AC off eBay for ~$40 which at the time was a crazy amount. I just checked Discogs and saw a copy for sale for $300, so I guess I made the right call.

Separately, has anyone heard anything about the Pioneer presale? I did the $5 deposit and they sent an email saying preorders were expected to go live august 1st, but I’ve heard nothing since

 

I guess this is exactly how I feel about XOXO - kind of just a collection of singles that are good, but very little depth.

 

You Are Ok was one of my favourite albums of the last decade.

 

Same for me as well

 

I haven’t seen any other updates about the Pioneer repress in a few months. I’m hoping after Lovely Little Weekend more info will come.

 

Yeah I’ll be in the tiny minority because I think YAO absolutely destroys everything else they’ve done, though I think LLL is their only other legitimately great record

 

Also same for me