How It Feels to Be Something On
Sunny Day Real Estate broke up in 1995 when bassist Nate Mendel and drummer William Goldsmith left to join the Foo Fighters or when frontman Jeremy Enigk converted to Christianity, depending on whom you ask. The band got back together in the summer of 1997 (minus Mendel, replaced by former Mommyheads bassist Jeff Palmer) to jam, and a full album blossomed. The result,How It Feels to Be Something On, is nothing short of stunning. Poking their heads into the gaping jaws of yearning, Enigk and company unravel tight, atypical rock songs to reveal a shimmering spool of uncertain longing. Almost sounding like an unlikely hybrid of the Smiths and Yes,How It Feels...is the grandest slab of musical sympathy since Smashing Pumpkins'Siamese Dream, equal parts intensity and sadness for the sing-along set. One of 1998's best albums.--Jason Josephes