On The Platter: Jeremy Enigk - Missing Link
Tuesday, October 9th, 2007
I am currently listening to Jeremy Enigk’s The Missing Link. I’ve known of Enigk since way back when he was still fronting Seattle’s Sunny Day Real Estate. That was one band I never really liked or never got. Even though the band made its mark during the height of the grunge era, they never really sounded like any of those other Seattle bands. Some rock critics now cite Sunny Day Real Estate as one of the pioneers of emo — which, if they are correct, would be the reason why I never liked the band. Let me say it now — emo sucks.
It was with great trepidation that I approached Enigk’s solo effort post-Sunny Day Real Estate’s first breakup. I’ve heard it was a far slower affair compared to his band’s music, which left me a bit cynical at first. But, nevertheless, I took the plunge and listened to Return of the Frog Queen — and promptly fell in love. I was surprised by the delicate beauty of that album, which was so far away from Sunny Day Real Estate’s forced chaos. This was Enigk sounding more genuinely earnest, more at home with his own skin. Listening to Return of the Frog Queen and his subsequent solo albums, you immediately feel that he is more at home with this more intimate sound.
Missing Link is just a natural progression of the sound he is exploring. This album though is a sparser affair (a compilation of some new songs and previous material that appeared in World Waits), with more emphasis on a more conventional acoustic sound. Enigk’s songs in Missing Link may sound a bit dated and you hear some weaknesses in his songwriting especially when you compare it with some really strong singer-songwriters right now like Jose Gonzalez, Damien Rice or Mike Kinsella, but there are still obvious gems on Missing Link. I especially love Been Here Before and the very beautiful rendition of Canons.
Missing Link is a decent effort and sets a strong message that we can still expect far stronger work from Enigk in the future.
