Artist: Matt Pryor Album: Wrist Slitter Bitrate: 231kbps avg Quality: EAC Secure Mode / LAME 3.98.4 / -V0 / 44.100Khz Label: Equal Vision Genre: Rock Size: 50.24 megs PlayTime: 0h 28min 46sec total Rip Date: 2013-11-23 Store Date: 2013-11-11 Track List: -------- 01. The House Hears Everything 2:41 02. Kinda Go To Pieces 3:21 03. Wrist Slitter 1:03 04. Words Get In The Way 2:26 05. Before My Tongue Becomes A 2:59 Sword 06. If I Wear A Disguise 1:53 07. As Perfect As We'll Ever Be 3:01 08. Foolish Kids 2:13 09. Say What You're Gonna Say 1:21 10. So Many Questions 2:31 11. There Is No Us 2:23 12. Won't Speak To Me 2:54 Release Notes: -------- Matt Pryor is a career musician who has no use for the word ôside project.ö His myriad musical endeavors range from emo-tinged pop punk (Get-Up Kids) and bombastic folk (The New Amsterdams) to childrenÆs music (The Terrible Twos) and electro-pop (Lasorda), not to mention a popular indie rock podcast, Nothing To Write Home About. It came as no surprise then when, in 2008, the songwriter also began releasing records under his own name. Those records û Confidence Man and May Day û were lo-fi affairs that, like PryorÆs first outing with The New Amsterdams, found the singer paring back his sound and experimenting with the occasional new instrument. Wrist Slitter, PryorÆs first LP after an existential hiatus, stands out amidst the singerÆs prolific output by being the most aggressive, sonically diverse, and positive record heÆs released in years. Though the lovely fingerpicked hush of ôAs Perfect As WeÆll Ever Beö wouldnÆt have been out of place on 2011Æs May Day, the rest of the album owes more to PryorÆs work with Get-Up Kids and his affection for bands like Superchunk and Braid. Openers ôThe House Hears Everythingö and ôKinda Go to Piecesö bear the sort of crisscrossing riffs and propulsive drumming that characterized Something to Write Home About-era Get Up Kids, while ôWords Get in the Wayö channels ôSlack Motherfuckerö by way of Punchline, whose Steve Soboslai guests on the track. And though itÆs nice to hear Pryor rocking again, he still shines on upbeat folk-pop tracks like ôIf I Wear a Disguiseö and ôFoolish Kidsö, both of which lean more towards his latter-day work with the New Amsterdams. ôBefore My Tongue Becomes a Swordö, however, a track penned by BraidÆs Bob Nanna and Saves the DayÆs Chris Conley, nearly derails the record with grating Mickey Mouse keyboards and comically nasal vocals from Conley. Jarring and abrasive, the song distracts in much the same way as the albumÆs title track, a bluegrassy call-and-response number that isnÆt unpleasant so much as out of place. That songÆs particular aesthetic, along with the vintage swing samples that bookend the record, point to underdeveloped themes that donÆt really jibe with the recordÆs occasionally self-helpy lyrics. In the end, everything you need to know about Wrist Slitter can be gleaned from the music itself, a return to form (and form and form) for Pryor that doubles as evidence for the singerÆs own artistic rejuvenation.