WhatzUp

Borrowed Arms
2 Foot Yard
by Jason Hoffman

2 Foot Yard

Borrowed Arms

Some songs take many listens to grab me, but the very first time I heard the demo version of 2 Foot Yard’s “Octopus” I was mesmerized. Two more listens and I was convinced that this is one of those classic songs that will still give me great enjoyment a decade from now.

And so I eagerly awaited the release of 2 Foot Yard’s second album, Borrowed Arms, so that I could have an official copy only to find that they “enhanced” the song, thus chipping away some of the incredible intimacy that was present in the demo. Not much, but enough to take an A++ song down to an A+. The haunting, aching melody and nearly all the original instrumentation of violin, cello and light drums remain, but the hollow, flowing cello solo has been replaced with a broken, disjointed guitar part. Nothing can reflect the yearning of a vulnerable heart more than a cello, and now it’s gone. Gone, I tell you! Not a huge change but enough to turn a perfect song into a nearly perfect song. As for the simple lyrics, taken by themselves they sound almost juvenile, describing what part of our heart we share and what part we keep for ourselves, but when paired with the gorgeous, evocative, key-transcending melody they become manna. Even in its injured state this one song is worth the cost of the entire album (and is available for free on their Myspace page).

So how about the rest of the album? The remaining 12 tracks range from very good to bloody brilliant. On the “low” end is the title track with appealing rubbery upright bass and a pleasing mix of 40s standards and light jazz wrapped in tight vocal harmonies. From there it’s up to “Seven Houses,” a clattering of sticks and bows with a plucky midsection and “Newbury Street,” a love song that is good on its own but just not up to the rest of the competition.

“Crisis” is about as raw an as art song can get, pitting rasping ragged vocals and gritty bowing in a rocky sea of rugged rhythms. This is contrasted by “Plane Song,” whose very opening chords manage to send chills down my spine. Small interval vocal harmonies and sparse instrumentation slow time on a terrifying airborne moment in somber tones, a song which must be experienced to be believed. “Drizzle” comes next, an off-kilter song that soon careens out of control with a gyrating clarinet leading the pack into a rock song, a rock song comprised of violin, cello, drums and clarinet, but unmistakably a rock song – a hard rock song at that.

“One Day in May” starts as a delicate whisper of a song, mouthing the hope of change or the ghosts of what might have been, slowly, seamlessly building in intensity from a single voice and clean guitar to a massive shriek of emotional anguish such that the distorted power chords are perfectly at home. The album closes with “The Great Escape,” a cathartic, nearly instrumental piece of mood, comprised solely of the lyrics, “In the great escape / She packs everything into small boxes / Any way out as the crow flies / If everything fits / She might go back anyway.”

By mixing equal parts art song, pop, punk, rock and chamber music, 2 Foot Yard have planted a warm plot of songs that pull at your heart with an outstanding earnestness. Nearly half the songs on Borrowed are beautiful creations that meld mind and heart. The rest are just downright plumb good. Highly recommended to all but die-hard fans of hairband metal. (Jason Hoffman)