Les Savy Fav - ROME (Written Upside Down)

I've written about Les Savy Fav before when I wrote about their album Go Forth here. That post includes all the details about how I was introduced to them by the means of a comparison on Paper Chase cd, and how they ended up introducing me to a girl when I was living in Australia, having first seen her wearing a Les Savy Fav t-shirt.

Les Savy Fav have become a live favourite of mine over the years - they never fail to put on an excellent live show, even if their most recent albums have done less for me. They've been disappeared for quite a while now, which is a shame because I definitely feel like I need another fix of them in person.

I got this copy of the Rome EP from my parents one Christmas - they'd asked if there was any music I wanted and I listed out a few albums with the usual line of "vinyl if possible, cds otherwise" and from somewhere this 12" arrived (I assume Amazon, but don't know for sure). Anyway, it was a nice surprise (anything 12" and square under the Christmas tree is always a good surprise).

I'd only heard Inches and Let's Stay Friends at this point so was very excited to hear some more Les Savy Fav. I. C. Timer is a huge opener but Asleepers Union dominates side A - the song is mostly intro, but it's perfectly paced build up to a brilliantly short climax. In These Woods has a slightly strange electronic intro, but quickly falls into memorable art-punk Les Savy Fav and Hide Me From Next February features some excellent semi-spoken lyrics and one of the heaviest choruses. Rome closes the EP after a mere 17 minutes with some great angular guitar work and a layered outro. All-in-all, it's a great selection of songs and a very strong release. A few months later I dug further into their back catalogue with Go Forth and 3/5 and much more recently I picked up a copy of Rome on cd for £1 in a second-hand shop (which means I finally have mp3s of the EP).

Format: 12", insert
Tracks: 5
Cost: Free, new
Bought: Gift
When: 25/12/07
Colour: Black
Etching: None
mp3s: No

Les Savy Fav - Go Forth

I've shockingly neglected this record. The problem with buying a huge amount of records in one go is that it's all to easy to not give them the time they deserve, and that's what happened here: I was in Colorado visiting a friend and spent a great deal of time in Bart's CD Cellar and Albums on the Hill. I spent my first ever Record Store Day in those two shops (RSD hadn't long been a thing, and this was long before the queues and exclusive records of modern times) and came home with this in the middle of a large stack of vinyl. I played all the albums shortly after getting back and even made mp3s of this one (although the often-shitty quality of my USB turntable might be to blame for the lack of plays).

The first time I heard of Les Savy Fav was by the way of a comparison to The Paper Chase when I first got into them (or rather, slightly before that. More details are here), however that wasn't what got me into them. Towards the end of my first semester in Australia I saw a girl in my halls-of-residence who I hadn't noticed before. I noticed her this time because she was wearing a Les Savy Fav t-shirt and so I assumed she at least had a cool taste in music (this was true. Too cool in fact, as I've mentioned here and here). At the start of my second semester there we were introduced by a mutual friend called Jimmy and she got me into a lot of bands I might not have heard otherwise. Despite all of this, I still didn't actually listen to Les Savy Fav until I got back to the UK and found a copy of Inches on cd in London. I'd heard about the concept (nine 7"s over their career put together to make an album) and thought it was pretty cool. I enjoyed them, but found I was way more into the earlier records than the later ones (Our Coastal Hymn is a mixtape staple).

Anyway, I've gradually picked up their back-catalogue (except for The Cat and the Cobra, which I really must buy). Playing this now, I don't know why I don't play it more often. Hopefully this realisation will be the catalyst that gets me listening to it more. Daily Dares and Pills are definitely highlights and it ends nicely with the line "This giving in is wearing thin" over and over and a locked groove of fuzz and feedback. Good stuff, but Inches is still a more rewarding listen.


Format: 12", insert
Tracks: 11
Cost: £7.04 new
Bought: Bart's CD Cellar, Boulder
When: 18/04/08
Colour: Black
Etching: Side A: "Steppin' me to death, steppin' me to death" Side B: "Shovolve"
mp3s: no