Search - Burning Brides :: Leave No Ashes

Review for "We Miss The Sun" & "Been Knocked Down"

wellwellwell | bog | 05/27/2005

(3 out of 5 stars)

"First things first: the 3 stars you see above do NOT represent the original, 12-track edition of Leave No Ashes. That album, with or without these two b-sides, gets 5 stars hands down, no questions asked. Okay [pause]. If you took the time (and $$$) to check out the b-sides from the Fall Of The Plastic Empire singles and/or imports, you were probably impressed. And not just mildly impressed, but rather "hey-these-songs-are-better-than-the-entire-album!" impressed. It was/is my opinion that "Overhead Metal Erection", "Steramine" and "See You Empty" are better than anything on the Brides' entire résumé (although it took a while for them to grow on me, and my initial reviews for said singles were far from just). So because of those brilliant b-sides, I went out of my way to find this particular import for the two songs "We Miss The Sun" and "Been Knocked Down", which, to my knowledge, are the only two b-sides from the Leave No Ashes release period. And the results? Although certainly not bad, they weren't what I was hoping for. But my expectations might've been too high to begin with.



"We Miss The Sun" reminds me of LNA's "Last Man Standing", although the lyrics are more upbeat here (e.g. 'I remember the way those perfect days would unfold / always when I was with you' or 'I loved the way that you used to shine all over me'). It is a slow-moving track, and I can maybe see why it missed the cut, even though I would rank it above the likes of "Dance With The Devil", "To Kill A Swan", "Another Teenage Suicide", and "Pleasure In The Pain". The second b-side, "Been Knocked Down", isn't so providential in its quest to be worthwhile. The title and lyrics may lead you to believe it is unforgiving ('been knocked down a million times / but I'll never hit the floor')--hard and rocking--when it is, in fact, hardly rock at all. Like "Pleasure In The Pain", it has an acoustic feel throughout while it doesn't even outdo "Pleasure" or the acoustic version of "Arctic Snow". I don't want to say I was heartbroken after listening to it the first time, but I definitely was not awed in the way I had wished. It's not a bad b-side; but it's not a good a-side.



Whether or not my take on those two tracks makes you think twice about buying this, ask yourself how much you love the Burning Brides. If they are one of your top five or perhaps even top ten favorite bands, I would recommend buying this. If you are just getting into the Brides, meaning you only kinda love them, and only know their 22 album tracks, I would suggest looking for an import version of Empire with the aforementioned three b-sides. But at least find them SOMEHOW. Then, if and when they are one of your favorite bands whose every song you must own, buy this. I waited a while upon getting this to see if the songs would grow on me like the Empire b-sides, and really only "We Miss The Sun" did, a little bit. I am by no means upset that I bought this, but (nevertheless) it's only getting 3 stars...."