The Audio Of Being

[Blighty]

So, I've been thinking lately about Matt's distaste of The Audio Of Being. Since seeing Matt live a couple times in the last few weeks and going back and re-listening to all his material, I've decided that I think Audio Of Being is my favourite MGB album (commence the ridicule if you must). But, I know that Matt doesn't like the album, is this just because of the band conflict while recording? Or does he have an issue with the songs? Personally, I think songs like Man Of Action, The Fall Of Man, Advertising On Police Cars and The Rat Who Would Be King are some of the strongest songs of his career. So, does anyone know what Matt's take is on the music of the album? Conversely, what's the attitude on The Bored like towards the album? Do people here share Matt's opinion on the record, or is it well-liked here? Just a little something for discussion.

[alex_madf3rit]

Most people really like the album around here. I think is amazing, not sure why Matt dislikes it though.

[michiforsberg]

I love it, there's nothing better than coming home on a friday night... pluggin AOB into the machine and uncorking a bottle of merlot...

[sodamntired]

his best album

probably dislikes it because it is when MGB broke up over.

[here is no why]

Yeah, just the time around the recording of the album was terrible for him. Kinda puts a black cloud over the whole thing.

 

I agree with everything you said, it's my favourite record he's ever made. I've said that since the very first time i listened to it.

[Seanathon]

Well he has shown that he at least likes some of the songs from AoB. What with Police Cars, Tripoli and Truffle Pigs all being re-recorded, and all three of them played live at some point. Plus, I remember a few tours ago he said something about a song being ruined for him, but he was taking it back, and proceeding to play The Rat.

That said, it's hard to blame him for staying away from that era.

[Devil On Rollerskates]

Well he has shown that he at least likes some of the songs from AoB. What with Police Cars, Tripoli and Truffle Pigs all being re-recorded, and all three of them played live at some point. Plus, I remember a few tours ago he said something about a song being ruined for him, but he was taking it back, and proceeding to play The Rat.

That said, it's hard to blame him for staying away from that era.

 

Yeah, and he changed the lyric "imagined" to "remembered", and instead of "typhoid" in one verse and "ashes" in the other, it's "ashes" both times. He also played Carmelina on the 2004 Put Out Your Lights tour, and he supposedly played Workers once or twice, but apparently no one got a bootleg of it. Also, according to setlists posted on this site, The Fall of Man and Under the Influence were played prior to the breakup of the MGB (UTI was also played in 2002). He's also played Sort of a Protest Song acoustically (2006), and if you hear it you'll notice the way he plays the ending of the song becomes the ending for She's in it For The Money.

[Shortcut To Moncton]

Yeah, and he changed the lyric "imagined" to "remembered", and instead of "typhoid" in one verse and "ashes" in the other, it's "ashes" both times. He also played Carmelina on the 2004 Put Out Your Lights tour, and he supposedly played Workers once or twice, but apparently no one got a bootleg of it. Also, according to setlists posted on this site, The Fall of Man and Under the Influence were played prior to the breakup of the MGB (UTI was also played in 2002). He's also played Sort of a Protest Song acoustically (2006), and if you hear it you'll notice the way he plays the ending of the song becomes the ending for She's in it For The Money.

that was a very thorough and knowledgeable post.

[finboy]

it is not only my favorite matt good album, but my favorite album of any artist. that said, given the circumstances of making the record it really isn't surprising that matt doesn't play a lot of tracks from that album. it wasn't as easy of an album to get into as beautiful midnight, it got almost no promotion after the band broke up, the band were falling apart during the recording of it, and from interviews it sounds like matt made a lot of concessions on songs (be it parts being added to them or songs being added to the album) which made the end product sound different than how he wanted it too. but i think that internal conflict is what makes the album feel the way it does, like a group of people that don't want to be in the same room with each other making very aggressive, desperate songs.

[AnOceanPearl]

The Fall of Man and Under the Influence were both played when MGB was touring in between Loser Anthems and Audio- twas awesome to hear them live.

 

I love AoB- I think it is definitely among his best work and easily one of my favorite albums ever, it contains my fave song ever (Protest Song), and this, along wih Beautiful Midnight, really helped me get through some tough shit I've had to deal with in my life, so for me there's a definite emotional connection with those 2 albums in particular. For me, even before finding out what happened with the band during the recording of AoB, I felt to me like an album that was about someone self-destructing and having seemingly everything fall apart around him, but then the last 30 seconds of Protest Song (the "no pain, no gain, no pain", plus the final, picked guitar part) almost redeems it I guess- it's like it's saying that yes, things are godawful and fucking shitty right now, but you can work through it, you will become a better person because of it, you will learn from it and you will move on, and that's something I latched onto.

 

Given what we know about what happened during that time, I don't find it surprising that MG doesn't go back to visit most of those songs- for me, it would be like if Shay and I broke up and I was stuck with all the stuff we bought together and had that reminder eating away at me all the time. I love that he revisited some of the songs, like Tripoli, Rat, Carmelina, and Protest Song for a couple tours- it was great to hear them, and hearing Protest Song those couple of times are some of my most cherished concert memories ever.

[here is no why]

Definitley one of my favourite albums ever. Makes my top 5 for sure. It was the first Matthew Good Band album i owned as well. I think i heard all the Beautiful Midnight singles and never bothered to check further. I was into heavier music at the time. I saw the Carmelina video and got hooked forever. Went out and bought the album soon after.

 

Man of Action is one of my favourite things Matt has ever done. Front to back it's amazing. I really love Truffle Pigs... "Jen i'll bring them to their knees..." is too awesome, that whole part.

[johnny]

I saw the Carmelina video and got hooked forever. Went out and bought the album soon after.

 

Still one of my favourite music videos to watch.

 

AoB is a great album - BM was the rise, AoB was the crash and Avalanche was like a rebirth. All of it farkin' awesome, and I'm pretty sure AoB gets the most plays for me of the three.

[Devil On Rollerskates]

that was a very thorough and knowledgeable post.

 

Yeah, that was my information post, I guess. Now here's my "how I feel about the album" post.

 

Definitely tied with BM for my favourite MGB album. This was of course the first album Matt did after his throat surgery, and AoB I believe has some of his best vocal takes ever (such as the final notes he hits on Man of Action and The Rat). His voice on this album combines the smoothness and range heard on Avalanche while retaining the bite heard on previous albums. As usual, MG really knows how to open and close an album (MoA and SOAPS), the latter of which is definitely one of his best songs. Other highlights for me include The Rat, Advertising, Tripoli and Truffle Pigs (the "Jen, I'll bring them to their knees" part is fantastic, although the person it's addressed to is probably the reason he doesn't play it anymore). Songs I feel are great but underrated include MoA, The Fall of Man, UTI and Workers (basically the best of the harder rocking material). Even Anti-Pop which is viewed by some as a throwaway track is a fun listen, and the lead single Carmelina is heavy and catchy, and has one of MG's best music videos. Let's see ... what didn't I mention ... oh, I, The Throwaway is a lovely song.

Like most of Matt Good's music, these songs have helped get me through some pretty tough times dealing with depression, anxiety and OCD, so they mean a lot to me. Considering the situation with the MGB at the time and the mental illness we now know he suffers from, it's really no surprise that I connected with his music.

Oh, and the AoB B-side All Together is his best song not on an album (actually one of his best songs period).

[michiforsberg]

Still one of my favourite music videos to watch.

 

AoB is a great album - BM was the rise, AoB was the crash and Avalanche was like a rebirth. All of it farkin' awesome, and I'm pretty sure AoB gets the most plays for me of the three.

 

 

I love the video to Carmelina... probably my next favorite to Weapon. AoB is probably my most fav MGB album. I have a deep emotional connection to both Avalanche and HM, I can't simply pick between the two.

[finboy]

Oh, and the AoB B-side All Together is his best song not on an album (actually one of his best songs period).

 

can't stress this enough, it's the closer on AoB on my ipod and it is perfect, that is THE track i would love to hear live

[Moonlight_Graham]

So, I've been thinking lately about Matt's distaste of The Audio Of Being. Since seeing Matt live a couple times in the last few weeks and going back and re-listening to all his material, I've decided that I think Audio Of Being is my favourite MGB album (commence the ridicule if you must). But, I know that Matt doesn't like the album, is this just because of the band conflict while recording? Or does he have an issue with the songs? Personally, I think songs like Man Of Action, The Fall Of Man, Advertising On Police Cars and The Rat Who Would Be King are some of the strongest songs of his career. So, does anyone know what Matt's take is on the music of the album? Conversely, what's the attitude on The Bored like towards the album? Do people here share Matt's opinion on the record, or is it well-liked here? Just a little something for discussion.

 

Others have talked about it already. From my understanding, the recording of the album was hell for him because of the bad vibes/fighting between the band leading to the breakup. Many of the songs bring up bad memories of that time, i remember Matt saying if i'm not mistaken.

 

The album seems to be the 2nd most popular one among Matt Good fans, just behind Avalanche. Most people basically worship those 2 albums on The Bored.

[eclipse]

Got a question - was Pony Boy recorded during the AoB era? Everything I found seems to point that way, even the music sounds AoB-ish, but the one thing bugging me is the fact that his vocals sound like they were recorded in '97 instead of 2001.

[finboy]

Got a question - was Pony Boy recorded during the AoB era? Everything I found seems to point that way, even the music sounds AoB-ish, but the one thing bugging me is the fact that his vocals sound like they were recorded in '97 instead of 2001.

 

i think it was demo'd for beautiful midnight, recorded for audio of being, but it didn't fit the feel of the album so it was cut

[haircut-rabbit]

i think it was demo'd for beautiful midnight, recorded for audio of being, but it didn't fit the feel of the album so it was cut

 

True story as far as Matt tells it. Apparently the original demo for this song was recorded pre-Beautiful Midnight and only Matt and Ian were present for it. It came back into the mix during the recordings for The Audio of Being (you can hear it being recorded in the 'Making of...' MuchMusic special), and was even included in the tracklisting in the weeks leading up to the album's release.

 

Years later, between Avalanche and White Light, someone leaked 'Pony Boy' and 'All Together' onto the official/unofficial Matthew Good message board (The Metro) and everyone ended up with a copy of the recordings from The Audio of Being sessions.

 

The song was remixed and released on In A Coma. 'All Together' was released as a bonus track for people who pre-ordered In A Coma on iTunes but I'm not sure if it was also remixed because I didn't get a copy of that .mp3. Anyone know?

[Curtster]

Well, for me, Audio of Being is my least favourite of all the MGB/MG albums.

 

There is a lot of positive about the album still for me of course. The worst MG album would still probably rank in my top 10 or 20 albums haha. I do rock out to Carmelina from time to time. Tripoli is a very solid song, Truffle Pigs and Rat are excellent.

 

The reasons I don't like to much may have a lot to do with how it came right after Beautiful Midnight (my favourite MG album). It just doesn't live up to it's predecessor for me, or really even to Underdogs. Man of Action is a pretty good song, but I've just never really gotten into it and is nothing compared to Giant. Anti-Pop could be Matt's worst song in my opinion, and if it isn't, it would probably be The Fall of Man. AoB has it's fair share of good songs though, but it doesn't have any great ones really. Songs like Under the Influence and Workers and good, just don't really stand out to me.

 

Matt's vocals on this album are a very nice balance though. You can definitely tell the difference, probably due to his throat surgery. As mentioned above, you can start to hear the smoothness heard on Avalanche, but he still has some of the bite that was heard on earlier albums.

[Vance]

The reasons I don't like to much may have a lot to do with how it came right after Beautiful Midnight (my favourite MG album). It just doesn't live up to it's predecessor for me, or really even to Underdogs. Man of Action is a pretty good song, but I've just never really gotten into it and is nothing compared to Giant. Anti-Pop could be Matt's worst song in my opinion, and if it isn't, it would probably be The Fall of Man. AoB has it's fair share of good songs though, but it doesn't have any great ones really. Songs like Under the Influence and Workers and good, just don't really stand out to me.

 

 

I just wanted to comment on this because I completely dissagree. I think Advertising on Police Cars, Tripoli, Sort of a Protest Song, and Man of Action are all in Matt's top 10 for sure for me. Not to mention Carmelina, Truffle Pigs, and The Rat who Would be King, which are all some of Matt's best work.

[Curtster]

I just wanted to comment on this because I completely dissagree. I think Advertising on Police Cars, Tripoli, Sort of a Protest Song, and Man of Action are all in Matt's top 10 for sure for me. Not to mention Carmelina, Truffle Pigs, and The Rat who Would be King, which are all some of Matt's best work.

Yup, that's totally valid. You've have your opinion and I have mine (which I realize is in a very small minority on this forum). Neither opinion is wrong ;)

 

I would definitely agree that Carmelina, Truffle Pigs and Rat Who Would be King are excellent songs (I beleive I said those are the highlights of the album for me). Like I said, most of the songs on the album are good, just not in my top MG songs as some of them are for you. Everyone has different favourites, that's all.

[eclipse]

True story as far as Matt tells it. Apparently the original demo for this song was recorded pre-Beautiful Midnight and only Matt and Ian were present for it. It came back into the mix during the recordings for The Audio of Being (you can hear it being recorded in the 'Making of...' MuchMusic special), and was even included in the tracklisting in the weeks leading up to the album's release.

Yeah, that's what I thought. Dunno about the vocals tho...I've listened to it loads and I have wondered whether Matt actually recorded the vocals or just used the ones from the demo take, because the vocals have more "bite" (everyone's been using that word) than anything on AoB. Which doesn't sound right at all, considering he had his vocal surgery...

[Audio of Being]

I read somewhere once.

 

Matt did not like the album because Dave was being Douche bag during the recording of it.

[RileyLewis]

Just wanted to add my two cents to AoB.

 

It's not my favourite album, but maybe is somewhere in the middle. However, I do think it contains a few top-tenners out of his work. Sort of a Protest Song and Advertising on Police Cars are outstanding tracks, in my opinion. I never liked Fall of Man, but lately I can listen to it a bit more. I like the ending of the song. Workers is obviously well-liked. And I really like Anti-Pop. It's an interesting take on a "hit song".

 

I would say my favourite albums are Avalanche and BM, but AoB is maybe 3 or 4 on the list. It obviously moves around as my tastes evolve. But I would agree with most here and say it's some of his best work in terms of music.