American Football -- American Football

I feel like everybody has that one album that they can listen to whenever their heart desires. For me, this special album is American Football's eponymous 1999 release. Ever since I first listened to it, the album has held a special place in my pre-frontal cortex (or whichever region of the brain houses long-term memory -- anybody a science major?). The way it infuses the heart-wrenching lyrics of emo music and the intelligence of math rock and post rock creates something magical in only 40 minutes worth of time. But enough with the sentimental talk -- let's get into some context behind the album.

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American Football started out as yet another side project of emo-entrepreneur Mike Kinsella. By the time of AF's conception, Kinsella had already been in two bands: Cap'n Jazz and Joan of Arc. Kinsella formed Cap'n Jazz with his brother Tim in 1989 when he was only 12 years old, and with the release of their first and only album, “Burritos, Inspiration Point, Fork Balloon Sports, Cards In The Spokes, Automatic Biographies, Kites, Kung Fu, Trophies, Banana Peels We’ve Slipped On and Egg Shells We’ve Tippy Toed Over” (seriously), the Kinsella brothers became cult heroes in the Chicago area. When American Football released their self-titled LP, they received heaping amounts of praise from critics, but little mainstream fanfare. Then, in true Kinsella fashion, American Football disbanded after one record. This early exit from the music industry propelled American Football to mythical status among indie music fans.

Musically, “American Football” is a departure from what other emo bands had been doing for a long time in that it is achingly mellow. Kinsella avoids raising his voice above a wholesome croon over the course of the entire album. Also, the backing tracks and instrumentation are as fulfilling as they are haunting. The actual high point of the album, in my opinion, is the intro track “Never Meant”. It kicks things off with a casual conversation by the band members and occasional drum spurts, but once the actual music begins, you’re immediately hooked. The lilting arpeggios and somber vocal performance from Kinsella draw you in even before the one-minute mark. This enchantment continues with tracks like “Honestly?”, with its coda so drawn out that you forget which album you’ve been listening to. Finally, the album culminates with a gorgeous instrumental piece titled “The One With The Wurlitzer”, featuring a trumpet solo so melancholy it sounds as if the horn itself is weeping.

Now, if you haven’t realized it yet, this is my favorite album of all time, so you’ll have to forgive me if I seem over sentimental during this review. Something about American Football just clicked with me the time that I discovered this band and record. I would recommend everyone to at least give it a listen.

SCORE: 5/5

HIGHLIGHT: Never Meant