Into It. Over It. - Proper (2011)
When I first downloaded Proper, the new Into It. Over It. record, I put it in my Itunes and instinctively tagged it as “indie folk” before putting it on my iPod and listening to it. It turns out that this album is about as far away from folk music as you can get, or at least as far as Evan Thomas Weiss has ever gotten with his Into It. Over It. project. This definitely speaks to Weiss’ versatility. In the past, Weiss has displayed his poetic side more than his punk credibility, while still demonstrating that the two are not necessarily exclusive. The best moments of his ambitious debut project 52 Weeks were the subtle and quiet ones, of which there were more than a few, while his recent Twelve Towns compilation, which culls from a series of split 7” records that he had released over the past year, also had a largely acoustic, folk-based sound. Meanwhile, he’s still touring as a solo artist, playing quiet sit-down shows with just his voice and acoustic guitar. On his first “proper” LP (get it?), Weiss changes gears somewhat.
The stylistic change that he displays is evident from the first track, a powerfully brief lo-fi stormer called “Embracing Facts”, in which Weiss tries to cram as many phrases per verse as he possibly can while repetitive percussion and arpeggiated guitar riffs circulate in the background. Maybe it’s fitting that the first thing the listener hears on the record are the drums. The standard set by “Embracing Facts” is met by most of the songs, with powerful punk songs like “Fortunate Friends” and “P R O P E R” making a pretty impressive initial impact that doesn’t let up with subsequent listens. Weiss turns down the punkish aggressive just enough throughout the album that it doesn’t seem uniform in style, but not so much that it loses its sense of cohesion. “Midnight: Carroll Street” begins slowly and builds into one of the catchier songs on the album, and “An Evening With Ramsey Breyer” throws the listener for a loop with its unpredictable chord progression. The gorgeous highlight “Where Your Nights Often End” is a little more subtle than the previously mentioned tracks, with atmospheric nods to Connecticut’s The World Is A Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid To Die. Proper’s other clear highlight has ties to Connecticut as well. Written as a tribute to Mitchell Dubey, the relatively low key “Connecticut Steps” is sad and respectful, but still surprisingly defiant-sounding — probably the way Mitch would have wanted it.
Weiss doesn’t abandon his folk side entirely though. Nevertheless, the acoustic guitar is largely used only as a side note on Proper, in the form of the short and inessential “No Good Before Noon.” Predictably, the album also ends with a folk song, but “The Frames That Used To Greet Me” is a good enough song that it mostly makes up for its cliche positioning on the album. The idea still annoys me though. It’s as though every sensitive punk kid decided after listening to Pinkerton every day for a year that one day they would make a punk album and then ‘surprisingly’ end it with a gentle, quiet folk song. I call it the “Butterfly” effect.
Still, it is interesting that Pinkerton came to mind upon hearing that song. Especially when Proper is rocking out, it’s hard not to be reminded of the emo-leaning indie rock bands of the 90s that Weiss seems to be inspired by. Nods to Weezer aside, the album also seems to take influence from Sunny Day Real Estate, Jimmy Eat World, and The Get-Up Kids in its music and melodies. Still, it’s important to note that this album is certainly not an emo revival album. It bears very little resemblance to the works of groups like Snowing and Algernon Cadwallader; for one thing, it ‘twinkles’ a lot less, but there’s also a big difference in vocal and lyrical styles between Weiss and his emo revival friends.
There is also some pop punk influence on this record that is pretty difficult to ignore. “Write It Right” has a pop punk guitar chug with just a little bit of twinkly riffage. Early standout “Discretion and Depressing People” is similarly punkish, with a pop punk chorus that will have you singing along in no time. What sets the album apart from efforts by more traditional modern pop punk bands is Weiss’ lyrical ability. While it’s easy to deride groups like Transit and The Wonder Years for their grandiose lyrical pseudo-profundities and immature self-reflection, Weiss seems more sincere in his approach to lyrics. He’s also a lot more capable of selling this lyrical style. Throughout the album, his thought-provoking lyrics strike the perfect chord between introspection and existential reflection, while his vocals convey what appears to be genuine honesty. I almost question whether his choice to hide his voice behind a vocal filter on some of these songs was to mask some of this honesty, which could potentially verge on overbearing at times. I wonder if the opening track “Embracing Facts” would still feel so perfectly muted if it weren’t for the lo-fi filter on Weiss’ vocals, or if the quiet folk aside “No Good Before Noon” would feel as heartbreakingly distant if his vocals had a fuller, more produced sound. Ultimately though, his lyrics outclass those of the majority of his peers in both emo revival and pop punk circles. Their honesty transcends Weiss’ singing — his voice only adds to his words’ self-declared poignancy.
Personally, I love the direction that Weiss is taking Into It. Over It. with this release. The focus is still on the lyrical content, which is uniformly excellent, but he backs it up with decent, occasionally great instrumentation and a sense of melody and harmony that improves on his previous work. It’s clear that this band is going places, and I just hope that wherever they end up doesn’t stray too far from where they are now.
7/10
Key Tracks: “Discretion and Depressing People”, “Connecticut Steps”, “Where Your Nights Often End”
Proper is available for pre-order from No Sleep Records. It will be released on September 27th.
