May, 2024
By Anthony Muñoz, Staff Music Critic
This month’s album was selected by 11th-grade English teacher Lydia Garrighan.
Anthony’s Rating: 8.4/10
The world of music is a roller coaster: finding a new artist feels like being at the peak of the ride, about to dive into a thrilling experience. But after riding that roller coaster several times, doesn’t it get repetitive? At the Cardinal Post, we’re here to deliver you with that new ride that will last you through this summer.
This month at the Cardinal Post, we’ll be reviewing an oldie that most haven’t heard: More Adventurous by Rilo Kiley. Rilo Kiley was a indie rock band that formed in 1998 and consisted of Jenny Lewis, Blake Sennett, Pierre de Reeder, and Dave Rock. The band debuted with The Execution which sparked hope in the band to continue making music thanks to great reception from fans. In 2004, they struck a deal with Warner Bros and released More Adventurous, which helped the band develop their own devoted audience. But after a four-year hiatus, the band announced they’d split up in 2014 due to “deception, disloyalty, and greed” amongst the band members. Although the band split up, this didn’t stop some of the members from pursuing their own musical careers.
More Adventurous opens with the track “It’s a Hit”, with probably the most cheerful sounding track on the album, using trumpets to emphasize an uplifting tone, to mask Jenny Lewis’s lyrics about frustration with songwriting. Rilo Kiley really grabs the audience’s attention through the massive focus on their production specifically on the first track.
The second track of the album, “Does He Love You?”, is a powerful narrative about two friends finding out they’ve been going out with the same guy. Throughout the track there is a recurring theme of independence; both of these friends seek independence, although one of the friends comes to the conclusion that it’s better to leave the relationship in order to become “free”, while the other friend stays in the relationship, with the false hope of making the relationship work out, with someone who is likely to cheat again. Of all the songs on this album, this track stands out, having production that sounds like it came straight out of a film.
The third track of the album, “Portions for Foxes,” is one of Rilo Kiley’s most streamed song; according to Rolling Stone it placed #326 in 2021’s list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Jenny Lewis’s lyrics describe a relationship that should have ended awhile ago, but they are desperately trying to stay together by participating in sexual activities with each other.
The fourth track is written and sung by Blake Sennet, who sings about the passing of Elliott Smith. Smith, a singer-songwriter, passed away on October 31, 2003 due to severe injury from two stab wounds. The members Rilo Kiley were very close friends with Elliott Smith, so to commemorate him, they dedicated track four, “Ripchord,” in his memory.
The fifth track “I Never”, is a classic love song with catchy lyrics by Jenny Lewis and impressive guitar riffs by Blake Sennet. This track starts off very calm with the smooth and quiet sound of the guitar and piano, and builds up into the second verse where everything calms down again. This song is a fan favorite to see live because the end of the song has a very memorable guitar riff done by Blake Sennet which is beautifully executed.
The sixth track, “The Absence of God,” begins with a peaceful guitar melody that continues for the rest of the track. This track is one of the more tamer songs on the album, every instrument is quiet and restful while the once loud trumpets are now drowned out in Jenny Lewis’s vocals. Rilo Kiley successfully provides a more tranquil track with vocals that sound carefree while masking the deeper theme of depressed frustration.
The seventh track, “Accidntel Deth,” sometimes gets overlooked. Although this track seems very cheery and playful, the lyrics hide a deeper message that Jenny Lewis tries to convey. “Accidntel Deth” is a message to people who take others’ lives away, and she asks if they even feel any sort of sympathy for what they’ve done. This track is dear to the members of Rilo Kiley because as mentioned previously they’ve lost a close friend to stab wounds that no one knows who inflicted. Accidental deaths can be avoided, and Jenny Lewis conveys this message through Rilo Kiley’s “Accidntel Deth”.
“More Adventurous,” track eight, tells the story about Jenny Lewis’s giving everything up for her true love instead of having to get married to someone because of her parents christian beliefs. This song has a different feel from the rest of the tracks on the album, feeling more like a country song while still having some slight indie rock aspects to it. The title “More Adventurous” refers to a line from Frank O’Hara’s poem “Meditations in an Emergency”, the meaning of “More Adventurous” to Jenny Lewis is the liberation and fearlessness that comes after heartbreak.
The ninth track “Love and War” is the most indie rock sounding track on the album, with powerful lyrics and electric guitar. This is one of the most underrated tracks on the album, currently having 904,479 plays. Although this might seem like a lot, compared to the rest of the tracks on the album it’s the least played track. This song has a deep message that is hard to pick up on the first listen. Lewis conveys a lot of thematic ideas throughout the track, like how people often talk about the bad once it starts to get serious or affect their lives. She also presents us with the idea that love and the war are alike in many ways. For example, in both love and war there are sacrifices, winners or losers, and fights. Although Lewis may seem to talk mainly about the bad, she highlights how both love and war have the ability to bring people together, influence passion, and even strengthen one another. This track is a hidden gem that stands out from the rest of the tracks, and is easily one of my favorite songs on the album.
The tenth track, “A Man/Me/Then Jim,” expresses the theme of how love sometimes fades away. Something unique this track does is tell that story through the POV of 3 different people in order: a man, Me, then Jim. Throughout the album it is very apparent that Jenny Lewis and Blake Sennet love to write narratives into their music, and this track perfectly demonstrates that. The track highlights the story of a man who has recently lost his friend, a woman whose husband is leaving her, and Jim who loves someone who will never love them back. Jenny Lewis and Blake Sennet demonstrate the power of music, and how anything can become music.
The album ends with “It Just Is,” a sad but hopeful note from Lewis that is solely dedicated to Elliott Smith. Previously on the album, Blake Sennet had also written a song about the loss of Elliot Smith, but this track goes in depth into Jenny Lewis’s experience with his sudden death. Lewis expresses her sympathy, sorrow, and frustration with death. Death can be so sudden, no one really sees it coming, and Lewis comes to the conclusion that it is inevitable, and that someday everyone will die.
Although Rilo Kiley has been split for a decade, it’s important to look back on music we might have overlooked or have never heard. Half of these tracks have been produced by Mike Mogis who is popular for his future work with boygenius, and it is very noticeable of his similar producing style with Rilo Kiley and boygenius. One thing I’ve come to love about More Adventurous is the way Rilo Kiley beautifully executes very catchy harmonies and melodies through the instruments, and is still able to leave space to express narratives and complex emotions through Jenny Lewis and Blake Sennett’s lyrics. Throughout the album, each track has their own personality thanks to the band writing each song with recognizable and catchy melodies in the guitar, percussion, and brass.
More Adventurous gives more insight into Rilo Kiley’s interpretation of the indie rock genre back in 2004. This album has poetic and complex lyrics, and great production throughout each track. More Adventurous receives an 8.4/10 for its unique interpretation of indie rock, being really impressive for its time. I recommend you give this album a listen if you’re familiar with the band boygenius and if you’re looking to dive into the indie rock genre.
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