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The Rescue

Flamingo Minutes (2004)
Slowdance Records

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Contributed by: greg0rb
(others by this writer | submit your own)

Published on July 9th 2004

Rescue: congratulations on become more listenable. When I was given Volume Plus Volume to review in 2002, it was the first time I had heard the Detroit foursome, and let me just say I was stunned. While I was impressed, the constant meter and tempo changes, pounding unorthodox rhythms, and dissonance made listening to the album in its entirety quite a workout. I worked up my endurance (pun intended) and started to enjoy the album more after the review was posted. The CD has since been re-released on Forge Again records as a double-disc with rarities, and in the June 2004 issue of AP, they listed the album as one of the 10 Essential Prog-Emo Albums, alongside The Mars Volta, Joan of Arc and Coheed and Cambria. This band is more like Braid than those guys, so they do clarify that this is more like “math-emo.” Was I right for comparing this band to Dillinger Escape Plan in pure musical tech, despite all the shit I got in the comments? Anyway, let’s move to the present.

What we have here could be called a mini-LP or mini-album, because it’s more than an EP at 8 tracks in 32 minutes (I’ve seen “full lengths” shorter than that…*cough Me First cough Gimme Gimmes*). What we have here should definitely be called a huge step forward in musicality. On Volume Rescue seemed to be four guys flexing their musical muscles; on Flamingo Minutes we have songwriters. This makes for a much more enjoyable listen and a more accessible record to the new fan with, in my opinion, no compromise to their overall sound.

Rescue has slowed the speed down a tad, but not the intensity as its opener “I am the Queen of Comparison” shows. They still use dissonance well, while the unique rhythms and dynamic change are still the most compelling elements to the band. Then, I noticed the lyrics, a first for me with Rescue. Before, they were incomprehensible beneath the barrage, now they push to the forefront with biting lines like “I will settle down with the first one who swoons me/ I am the queen of comparison/ I will fuck you on my floor/ in my room, at my door.” This first track leads into the insane instrumental “Psuffix,” a minute long onslaught of clashing tones and microphone-clipping cymbals, proving this band has not gone soft in the least.

“Moment & Morning: 1981-1986” has the best vocal line I believe the band has written yet (with its competition being the following track “Concerns”), moving up and down in range, with bite yet melody. The last album had times the vocals were downright annoying, but no more. Also, on this song the band sounds kinda like Cursive, but still with their own style and technical prowess in there. Another band comparison would be Murder by Death in “Through/ Suit”, the slowest Rescue track I’ve heard, and not because they throw in a cello-they don’t- it just has a good groove with acoustic guitar and some whispery vocals, a definite growth for the band; an expansion of their sound.

A couple interesting things I have never seen on an album before: they have a song pronounced “Eating Jesus”, but typed as “Eating” then a Jesus fish symbol. Deeper in the liner notes it says how it is supposed to be pronounced. Also, I had been looking at the lyric sheet to see the track listing, thinking they were not printed on the outside art. But then I discovered it was there after all, hidden on the opposite spine. Different.

Most importantly, we have a band that is growing. Still intense and artistic yet with a batch of better songs, Flamingo Minutes should allow Rescue to keep their old fans and win even more new ones.

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Anonymous (March 11, 2006)

i saw u guys in houston and have been looking for u since then and i finally found u guys ! i walked in on ur drummer peeing and he smiled an waved and kept on ,hahaha, you guys rock and i love it

Anonymous (March 28, 2005)

i love your music Rescue.... i went to your show in Muskegon on the 26th of march and i loved it... i cant wait till you play next time. your cd is now one of my favorites.i can really escape from everything when i listen to Flamingo Mintues.. Scottie B. p.s. Alan we will be buzzin the next time we meet

Anonymous (August 22, 2004)

You guys are major assholes... writing this type of stuff when you were 17?

Yeah i doubt that, plus since your commenting immaturely on reviews on punknews.org i doubt your any older then 17.

You guys clearly dont love music, you love pretending your cool on the internet to people you will never meet becuase it makes you feel good about yourself. If you really loved music youd realize that just becase you dont like something you dont have the right to mock it.

Great album though, its better live.

Anonymous (July 26, 2004)

Hey, Mr. "I was playing this stuff at 17"; Did you put your spare time and hard work into making a record? No? Didn't think so. How about some constructive critisism instead of bloating pointless comments?

I used to not enjoy this CD. The vocals threw me off at first, but I'm beginning to come around.

Anonymous (July 15, 2004)

I dig it!!

Anonymous (July 14, 2004)

this kinda makes me sad to hear this,I used to play stuff a little like this when I was about 17. It's sad to see that people in their 20's do it and are actually putting out records of it.

Anonymous (July 13, 2004)

Moment and Morning: 1981-1986? Fuck these hippy shits. "Oooooh they're so deep" I bet that's what they want us to think.

This shit died with Garcia, you fucks.

Anonymous (July 13, 2004)

zzzZZZZzzzZZzzzz

greg0rb (July 13, 2004)

BSD, please go away.
Thanks.

Anonymous (July 13, 2004)

Yeah, this is the musical jazz equivilent of a hippy banging a punk scenester while she's tripping on acid and puking all over his Grateful Dead shit.

-BSD

Anonymous (July 12, 2004)

Bands like this and fordirelifesake make me proud to be from Michigan.

-Arin

Anonymous (July 12, 2004)

the music is pretty cool and interesting, but their singer really ruins it for me. too much of the same nasal "emo" vocals that make a potentially interesting band really boring.

Anonymous (July 11, 2004)

Absolutely awesome. This is a case of "i get it myself, but i can see how other people might really love it". This is just a case of "this shit is awesome".

Anonymous (July 11, 2004)

because of this fucking hippie shit punk was invented....

Anonymous (July 11, 2004)

Absolutely awful. This isn't even a case of "i dont get it myself, but i can see how other people might like it". This is just a case of "this shit is terrible".

Anonymous (July 10, 2004)

has that slowdance sound

Anonymous (July 10, 2004)

Prog Emo is a fancy word for Prog Rock is it really necessary I don't consider Cave In as an emo band.

Barkley