Keep It Like a Secret [Import] (180 Gram Vinyl)

Built To Spill: Doug Martsch, Scott Plouf, Brett Nelson. Additional personnel: Sam Coomes (keyboards). Principally recorded at Bear Creek, Woodinville, Washington in November 1997. Having led Built to Spill down the road of majestic guitar duels on 1997's PERFECT FROM NOW ON, group mastermind Doug Martsch decided to downplay (but not shelve) his six-string heroics here. Instead, the focus of Built to Spill's fourth proper full-length is the ensemble playing. Having for the first time in B2S' existence retained his rhythm section (bassist Brett Nelson, drummer Scott Plouf) for a second consecutive album, Martsch shows off what may be the strongest power trio in rock circa 1999. Consequently, KEEP IT LIKE A SECRET coalesces into a powerful classic rock band statement at a time when those are hard to find. Lyrically, Martsch's concerns have retained the indie rock community's focus--its outsider status ("Carry the Zero") and ability to self-reference rock's long history to get its plaints across ("You Were Right"). Structurally, he has streamlined his songs into concise rock-pop nuggets that carry more crunch than his Up records ever mustered, fitting his epic way with a melody into a more radio-friendly package. What comes out is a great (and different) Built to Spill record, proudly displaying its strengths and reveling in its uniqueness even while making concessions to a changing world.