Maritime - Tearing Up the Oxygen

Let's dispense with the obligatory statements right up front. 1) Maritime consists of Davey von Bohlen and Dan Didier (formerly of The Promise Ring), and Eric Axelson (formerly of The Dismemberment Plan). 2) We, The Vehicles is a more focused and successfully rendered album than their debut, Glass Floor. 3) The majority of indie-kids and punk-rockers really don't want to be called "emo."

You can get any one of those points (and often, all three) from just about any review of Maritime; all three can be disputed or rebuked.

While Maritime was founded by two members of Promise Ring, this fact is just about as useful as knowing Davey was also in Cap'n Jazz. I suppose to a degree, if you are a fan of his writing, or just curious to see how he turned out, you might want to know that Davey is writing lyrics and music for this new project. But the vocal delivery is so developed and refined on We, The Vehicles, that one might have a hard time even believing this the same singer. It gives hope to those of us who cut our teeth with shredded vocal chords.

And sadly, Eric Axelson, well regarded as one of the best bass players in the indie scene today, has left Maritime. He cited a longing to stay home rather than tour and didn't want to hold the band back. Whether or not he'll appear on future records is anyone's guess, but it does make We, The Vehicles more essential. Axelson's basslines manage to be both humbled and humbling; they are neither showy nor simplistic. They add another layer of melody while laying the foundation for von Bohlen's sharp counterpoints and stripped-down-to-necessity arrangements.

Now I can't really weigh in on the first album versus this one; I haven't heard Glass Floor. I'm only writing about Maritime now because Patrick shared "Parade of Punk Rock T-Shirts" with me a few months back. (I believe the blog he downloaded it from has slipped our collective memory.) Seems a good number of internet trolls point to Wood/Water as an indicator of We, The Vehicles and deride the lazy reviewers' attempts to suggest the The Vehicles is a quantum leap from anything any of the band members have done before. (But other folks think Wood/Water was an experimental mistake akin to Glass Floor.) You'll have to make up your own mind... just wanted to let you know.

Finally, if 'emo' means Rites of Spring or even Promise Ring, hell yeah, I listen to emo. (I don't think I'd say I AM 'emo,' but that's ridiculous high school stuff and mostly semantics.) I suppose somewhere between genuine, sincere expression and hardcore kids growing up, emo became another fashion and ultimately ended up another mold to fill. That doesn't mean I won't sing out "Oh Amy! Don't hate me!" or "I don't know Billy Ocean. I don't know the ocean floor," driving down the freeway or alone in my apartment. Busted. I'm emo.

But Maritime really has nothing in common with 'emo,' unless you use too broad a definition. It's cheap way out of really reviewing a song. Next thing you know, the writer has told you all about the people in the band and their history without giving you much description of the actual music. Sort of like I just did.

(Buy We, The Vehicles at Amazon.)