review in progress
since high school they've been my favorite band, but my taste in the past year or two has diverged drastically from their style. It's probably because their more recent material is low on harmony, high on the jarring mood split between amy and emily. i would always swear that IG put on the best concerts in the world, but it seems like every show recently, there's been a yo-yo between well-written, good tempo amy material and slow, sophomoric jazzy emily whines. i wish emily would take some time off and really work at her craft, be more daring, challenge herself lyrically like she always has done. Shaming of the Sun and Come On Now Social have some good Em numbers that I can tolerate, but I think even she knows she's not producing good numbers like she used to, seeing how quickly "Caramia" and "Leeds" were dropped from the concert rotation. "Soon Be to Nothing" and "Everything in Its Own Time" are just stinking with cliches and she seems incapable of writing about the social
justice issues that so preoccupy her without resorting to tired phrases that have little to do with the personal minutiae she can be so excellent at evoking. It's like folk NPR or some liberal tedious propaganda. "Andy" is ambitious and I like it, because it's actually close to capturing an emotion, but she still feels removed and bitter, as in the most passionately uttered line, "Will you break me?"
cool ig articles: my date w/the ig
better indigo girl pix are available here: