I missed you, Thursday.

You and I, we used to go for walks together on a regular basis, buy popsicles when it was 40 - below with our devil-may-care attitudes, brazenly jay-walking on our way to shows... the world was our oyster. The world is STILL our oyster, Thursday.

Oh, "Common Existence" is anything but, kicking off with that exquisite, affirmation anthem "Resuscitation of a Dying Man" and the classic lyric "We could be a breath of air/ to the lungs of the dying". Baby, you're MY breath of fresh air. This album is the ball-kicker that "Appeal To Reason" failed to deliver!

Label changes always make me nervous because they mean new protocol, different production standards, and different production decisions. But it's ok! Is that Dave Fridmann's influence as producer? He made me love Mogwai, after all. Not that you don't already have my love - you do! - but maybe I am falling in love all over again. Oh, post-hardcore romance...!

"As He Climbed The Dark Mountain" is a mind-f*** of sliding guitars, and I'm getting a little AFI- deja vu with the Jade-esque axe-work, gang vocals and executioner vocals up the ying-yang. But it works. "Circuits of Fever" kills me with its heavy tribal drums and dreamy riffs (silverchair a la "Steam Will Rise", anyone?), and "Subway Funeral" is so chaotically playful that it brings a tear to my eyes as I recall the youthful days of My Chemical Romance at Eyeball Records.

I know that you aren't supposed to try to change the person you're in a relationship with, but Thursday you are at your best when furious and righteous. Where did the ire go? Please get pissed off about something HUGE for the next album.

Speaking of which, I was super pissed when "Hail Destroyer" didn't make as many Best of 2008 lists as it deserved, and I'll be just as irate this time next year if "Common Existence" is snubbed in the same way for 2009 releases. So, please stay in touch, Thursday. We work so well together.

Track Listing:

1) Resuscitation Of A Dead Man
2) Last Call
3) As He Climbed The Dark Mountain
4) Friends In The Armed Forces
5) Beyond The Visible Spectrum
6) Time's Arrow
7) Unintended Long Term Effects
8) Circuits Of Fever
9) Subway Funeral
10) Love Has Lead Us Astray
11) You Were The Cancer