The Appleseed Cast - Two Conversations

The first time I heard The Appleseed Cast was when I was asked to review Lost Songs for this site. I thought the album was decent, made a mental note to check out more of their stuff, and then just forgot about them for a couple months. My co-worker at the next desk over downloads and plays music all day long, and just last week I heard one song that had a great hook. He replayed it several times, and each time I kept getting drawn into it until I could no longer resist asking, "who is that?" The answer: The Appleseed Cast. Duh... thank you, Jon, for reminding me that I really needed to listen to more of this band. Their new album, Two Conversations, is a more "return to rock" for the Appleseed gang. If the two-disc Low Level Owl showed their experimental nature, this set will ground them back into the emo-indie rock category; in this instance it's not a bad thing whatsoever. Two Conversations begins with a minute and a half worth of ambient sounds before launching into their trademark emo-rock sound on "Hello Dearest Love". This is followed by "Hanging Marionette" -- the song that was played over and over for me at work and drew me into their sound. The title of the record, Two Conversations, comes from the concept behind the music, where anger and bitterness are followed by forgiveness and regret... I'm presuming it's about a relationship. "Losing Touching Searching" sounds like a heartfelt plea while the next track, "Fight Song", addresses the problem of cheating in a relationship. A couple songs later, "Innocent Vigilant Ordinary" has a more reflective, forgiving feel, which is especially evident in the lyric "I want you to know I will always love you, always be your friend." It seems to almost apologize for whatever happened in "Fight Song". It's a interesting concept carried throughout, in that it feels like a rollercoaster ride. It makes the album that more enjoyable. Yes, I love this album. In my opinion, it's very well-written, well-produced, a sounds great. I would probably take the risk (once again) of saying this could be in my "Top 10" for 2003. Though, I could see some of the Low Level Owl fans that enjoyed the experimental Appleseed thinking this album is step backwards. Then again, as a fan, I feel it's a refreshing change. [www.theappleseedcast.com]