Joan of Arc, Life Like (side A)

While the sequencing of Joan of Arc albums rarely follows a logical or narrative flow, 2011's Life Like chooses an especially confusing path.  The album opener, "I Saw the Messed Blinds of My Generation", is the longest and most abstract song on the album, with many jarring interruptions against the intricate and heavy musicianship which runs through it.  It's the type of songs that bands usually introduce after an album has established flow and momentum.  At the top of the album, it definitely does emphasize Life Like's sharp break from the prettier songs that were prominent on Flowers and Boo! Human.  Most of the other songs, while retaining this aggressiveness, follow more conventional structures built around vocal melodies.  A prominent exception is "Life Force", which interrupts the end of side A with a short, fairly rough acoustic interlude — it feels like a sketch when surrounded by such purposeful playing, and it too falls in an unexpected point in the middle of the sequence.  The album comes with a booklet of collages on thick, nice paper.  While the swirly cyan vinyl looks great, I'm guessing its poor quality causes the audible high-end breakup.