Posted: by The Alt Editing Staff
When it comes to Pianos Become the Teeth’s 2014 release, Keep You, it’s a perfect record to discuss the past and present. Upon release, fans were hesitant to open up to it given the drastic sonic change from The Lack Long After, but as time progressed, it seems to have carved a place deep inside the hearts of listeners.
There are many parts of life that can make us appreciate an album more than we once did. Lived experiences, death of loved ones, and the constant passing of time are not only the main sticking points of Keep You but are what we keep finding ourselves drawn back to. Right from the beginning of the album, Kyle’s heartfelt yearning to get the feeling of happiness back on “Ripple Water Shine” allows us to be honest with ourselves and each other. Putting that into a live setting, especially ten years later, is opening yourself up in a way more vulnerable than most would typically allow. Being on stage singing about the fallout from losing your father in such intimate detail while the audience loudly sings along shows that there is always someone who feels how you do.
Kyle took time to discuss how he feels he didn’t allow himself to appreciate the album and how raw it was at the time. An innate fear of being seen took over him. Overcoming the fear of being seen by strangers allowed us to feel comfortable with each other and sing along to “Repine” and “Late Lives,” arguably the two most personal songs on Keep You. In the moment of relating to complete strangers in a 300-cap room, you meet people you never thought you would. Because of Pianos Become the Teeth’s musical encouragement to be open with each other, I spoke to a group of friends who traveled all the way from Texas to Massachusetts to catch this anniversary show and got to hear their stories of how the album guided them through their 20s and what it meant for them to be there.
With this being an album playthrough, it was nice to hear the b-sides of the album that do not see as much play live. Tracks such as “Enamor Me” and “Say Nothing” in particular shine in a live setting and elicit a stronger emotional response than just listening on record. After seeing these ten tracks performed front to back and the positive response to them ten years later, I think it is fair to place Keep You in the top three “emo” albums of the 2010s revival. The only two viable candidates to rival it would be Home Like Noplace is There and Intersections, which were also celebrated within the last year. This celebratory run of shows is short, and if you’re in the area or want to make the trip, we encourage you to pick up tickets HERE before they’re gone.
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Kyle Musser//
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