PREGNANT – Life Hard: I Try (Part 3)

Life Hard: I Try might have a shorter shelf life than previously thought – not just because Trudeau thought releasing it via cassette tape initially was the most righteously awesome thing he could do for his career. In other news, Brandon is available and bearded.

Because we’re still stuck on WordPress (Sincerest apologies. The path to excellence is indeed a slow one.) we cannot embed the album stream. However, you can click anywhere here to open the player in a new window and listen while you read!

From: Brandon Hall
To: Sarah Braunstein

Um, listen. I know Natalie introduced me to Mirah. But I believe I deserve credit for introducing you to Mirah. Credit where credit is due, please.

Also, “Old men shit in a clearing, that’s how they get clear”!? That’s an amazing line! What song is that on? I knew I would love the lyrics on this album if I could just focus my brain and hear them.

You know more and more “indie” acts are releasing their work on cassette tape, right? I think it’s the epitome of hipster douchiness. I can’t believe it’s in any way cheaper than releasing on CD, but it comes with the addition that hardly anyone besides homeless dudes and old men in baseball stadiums own cassette players. So what the artist is really saying is, “Please don’t buy this. I’d prefer if no one besides homeless dudes and old Kansas City Royals fans listened to this record.”

(OK. I know what you’re going to say. Yes, I did make you a mix tape on a cassette and presented it with my old walkman from middle school. That was charming and adorable. And, for that matter, I delivered the CD version a couple weeks later! Furthermore, it meant that I no longer owned a cassette player of any kind. So I refuse to let you use that against me. Not that you don’t have a plethora of ammunition – I run a music blog, I live in Brooklyn, I have a beard.*)

Dolphin noises on “Ritual and Habit?” Thoughts?

Here’s my real question, and maybe you have some insight on this: Is Pregnant offering anything new to the musical landscape? Is he doing something that really deserves the discussion we’re giving it here? I’m honestly not compelled to keep listening to the album. And considering Girls’ newest Father, Son, and Holy Ghost leaked today, it’s taking a lot for me to keep trying to suss out Pregnant. This is a bad sign. But maybe it’s just not my jam. Objectively speaking, would you recommend this album to people?

Kind of bored,
Brandon

*[Hey, ladies.]