We know we’re not going to make it big.” When Martsch received his signing money, he moved out of the Boise, Idaho, trailer home he was occupying with his girlfriend, Karena Youtz, and their son, Ben (now almost five), into a real house with a home studio in back. But then, you also wouldn’t hear Thom Yorke say, as Martsch does, that he lives so frugally because “we know it’s not going to last. You wouldn’t expect this attitude from, say, Radiohead, arguably the only other late-’90s band to have released a guitar album as majestic as Built to Spill’s last one, the Warners debut Perfect From Now On. He chooses to, just as he’s chosen to have himself and the other two members of Built to Spill-drummer Scott Plouf and bassist Brett Nelson-do without a roadie and squeeze three into a room (including foldout cot), on a tour that must be earning the band four-figure guarantees each night. It should also be pointed out that, given the size of the contract Martsch signed with Warner Bros in 1995, after a record-label bidding war for his services, he doesn’t exactly have to live this way. This guy was like, ‘What do you want?’ ‘Uh, I need to get in.’ ‘What room are you in?’ ‘Uh, 222.’ He was like, ‘Oh, okay, sorry.’ So if I ever am a street person, I’ll just go ‘222.’ Works every time.” It should be pointed out that the hotel in question is the Best Western off Route 1. “They almost didn’t let me back into our hotel. My mom sent me a pair of pants recently.” Between his coat and his customary beard, Martsch had been mistaken for a panhandling homeless guy the morning of our interview in tony Princeton, New Jersey. Go to thrift stores sometimes, but I never want to look at clothes. I’ve wanted to get a new one for a few years, but I just never shop. The guitarist/singer/songwriter has had it, he says, “eight years or something. It was yellow originally, maybe, or light brown, or tan-hard to tell through the stains. Built To Spill Still Demand That Listener Meet Them On Their Own Terms - These Just Happen To Be The Easiest Terms To Understand In Their Catalog." AllMusic Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine.This piece originally ran in the February 1999 issue of SPIN. In honor of the 20th anniversary of Built to Spill’s Keep It Like a Secret, we’ve republished this article here.ĭoug Martsch, the leader of Built to Spill, has this winter coat with a hood and lots of pockets. This Approach, Combined With The Shiny Sonic Textures, Makes Keep It Like A Secret The Most Immediate And, Yes, Accessible Built To Spill Record, But They Steadfastly Open Their Music Up And Breathe The Way, Say, Pavement Did On Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain Or Brighten The Corners. That's Not To Say That The Album Is Compromised - The Songwriting May Be Streamlined, But Doug Martsch Now Packs All Of His Twists, Turns, And Detours Into Dense, Three-minute Blasts. In A Sense, This Is Built To Spill's Pop Album: Every Song Is Direct And Clean, Without The Long, Cerebral Jamming That Characterized Their Earlier Albums. They Embraced The Sounds Of A Big Studio And Focused Their Sound Without Sacrificing Their Fractured Indie Rock Aesthetic. "Perhaps Realizing That Their Time On A Major Label Was Likely Limited, Built To Spill Made A Gutsy Choice For Keep It Like A Secret, Their Second Album For Warner Brothers. Bottom Left Corner Moderate Crease & Bump. Sealed 2020 Reissue, Housed In Non-Gatefold Cover.
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