What You Say And What You Mean

A rock band from Oakland, CA with a tangy, tortured, titillating twist.

Try: 1, 2, 5, 9

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Sounds Like: Yo La Tengo, Pavement, The Long Winters

1. Invisible Geography 02:51 - Uptempo opener about ghosts in San Francisco, the meaning of the appearance of hallways in dreams, and wanting to be friends with people whose work you admire.
2. Afternoon Waking Life 02:40 - Wistful sort-of love song written in a December, with a nice chorus.
3. Goals and Means 03:49 - Slow burner with a big finish about the shortcomings of verbal communication.
4. Slide Collection 03:31 - Big opaque rock song written after viewing slides of Robert Mapplethorpe photos at the Berkeley Public Library.
5. What a Great Time! 03:14 - Hook laden rocker inspired by train travel in the Bay Area and Sylvia Plath. J'accuse ted hughes!!
6. Long 20th Century Boy 02:50 - Straight ahead rocker about people in the 21st century wishing they lived in the previous one.
7. Alameda (Likes Ike) 03:54 - Imagined Life Magazine cover depicting 1950s Alameda.
8. Tidings 02:44 - Assembled using fragments of the 2015 Oakland riots and the film Wings of Desire.
9. The Midwest is Boring 03:38 - Written in a bitter haze soon after starting first full time job. About the midwest of the mind.
10. Economy Island 04:40 - Brooding collage of Don DeLillo's White Noise together with a anecdote collected at Ashby BART about ghosts in a Stockton apartment building moving through the "white noise" of radio/television static. Features a recording of Diane Di Prima reading from Revolutionary Letters.