Promise Ring - WoodWater (12 tracks) +Album Reviews

The Promise Ring grows up

indiemom | Midwest, USA | 05/25/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Sometime in the last few years an amazing thing happened to me. I woke up to find myself married and with a small child. To my surprise and utter horror, I grew up. This has been a difficult thing to reconcile with my musical tastes. I have found many of the bands I had love affairs with are no longer relevant to my life. Its hard for me to connect to a band of 30 year old men singing about going on first dates or young girls and boys whining about getting dumped. I am far from that place. Just when I thought I was truly relegated to alt country alone, this album comes my way. All the old feelings of love and affection I have had toward the Promise Ring are renewed in an album that sounds like it was written and performed by someone my age for someone my age! As I expected to read, they are getting a lot of flack from the fans. Don't believe a word of it. Wood/Water is a beautifully constructed album. This album is filled with the wonderfully familiar and comfortable Davey von Bohlen lyrics I grew up to. Stop Playing Guitar is a introspective song about taking stock of your accomplishments and appreciating your surroundings. My Life Is At Home is a subtle love song that never fails to make me think of my husband and daughter. To sum it up, Wood/Water is the soundtrack to a gorgeous Spring Saturday afternoon."

Incredible Musical Adventure

B. Brewton | 08/05/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I cannot believe how many negative reviews I have read about this album, arguably one of the best emo albums of all-time. The Promise Ring broke up because of people who just couldn't accept their change in sound. This entire album came about from their lead singer being diagnosed with brain cancer, overcoming the cancer, and then feeling more introspective with his songwriting. These songs reflect a range of emotions, from actualizing your own death to cherishing every second of life. The lyrics are amazing, the orchestration is miraculous, and WOOD/WATER is an amazing album."

I was skeptical, but it's a great album...

B. Brewton | 09/04/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I respect the Promise Ring for making a concerted effort to remove themselves from the current "emo" sound. Most bands would attribute this to "maturing" or "evolving". To me, when a band says they've matured or evolved it's usually a bad thing. The Get Up Kids for instance, just stopped rocking. They don't sound like the band I was into 5 years ago. But the 'Ring embraced change, stated that and didn't try to tiptoe around it.
That being said, the album is full of great "rock" songs...most are mellow and chill. It's literally like they went from little hyper-happy kids to chilled out happy grownups. Granted it's not *exactly* like their old stuff, but take it on it's own--it's a great album."

A Promising Return

joel van gorder | Milwaukee, WI USA | 04/26/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It has been 3 years since the Promise Ring's last album, Very Emergency. In that span of time the Promise Ring has changed lineups, completely refined their sound, and created Wood/Water, possibly the best album of their career. Wood/Water is the antithesis of Very Emergency. The Promise Ring trades in the straight-forward rock stylings of their previous albums for more complex, laidback material with Wood/Water. The result is complete success. On the album the band experiments with keyboards and other effects, creating playful, textured melodies that are reminiscent of British bands like Travis and Coldplay. Trust me, this is a good thing. The first single "Stop Playing Guitar" is proof that the Promise Ring can still make that one song that you can never get out of your head. With a rousing "yeah, yeah" chorus and a gorgeous lead guitar riff courtesy of Jason Gnewikow, "Stop Playing Guitar" is sure to please any Promise Ring fan. Songs like "Bread & Coffee," "Half Year Sun," and "My Life is at Home" display a new sense of songwriting maturity that has only been hinted at before. They include some of Davey's best and most heartfelt lyrics to date sung in his breathy, hushed tone. "Become Anything One Time" is the standout track. The melody is top notch with a muted guitar lead throughout the verse that just tickles the listener's spine.With Wood/Water the Promise Ring reclaim their throne at the top of the indie rock world. Wood/Water picks up where "Nothing Feels Good" left off, containing some of the best indie-pop songs you will ever hear. As a long time Promise Ring fan, take my word, do not hesitate, and go buy this album. It is well worth it."

A bad CD that I keep listening to

indiemom | 05/03/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"What can I say, when I heard several tracks from this album on the ANTI website a while back I was really disappointed. When I finally got the CD, I listened through and was fairly bored. I considered just about all the songs pretty sappy and weak, and perhaps even unoriginal. At first listen, the album, so much different from their last three, wasn't holding up.So why 5 stars? Because I can't stop listening to it! Despite my complaints, it's in my CD player as we speak. The reason? Although Wood/Water is so awfully incomparable to TPR's others, they all have something in common: there is some quality in the music that makes it grow on you. Maybe it's Davey's vocals and lyrics, or quite possibly something far beyond explanation. But whatever it is, it has pulled me in, and I find this CD, like the last three, to be very enjoyable.It's hard to say who *should* get this CD, with the exception of TPR fans, since this sort of music can't simply be thrown into a category. If you're willing to take a chance with Wood/Water, you may find it to be quite rewarding."

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