Songs About Leaving

Songs About Leaving
Studio album by Carissa's Wierd
Released	August 6, 2002 (2002-08-06)
Studio	The Hall of Justice, Seattle, Washington
Genre	Indie rock chamber pop slowcore
Length	44:42
Label	Sad Robot
Producer	Chris Walla
Carissa's Wierd chronology
You Should Be at Home Here (2001) Songs About Leaving (2002) Scrapbook (2003)

Songs About Leaving is the third and final studio album released by the American indie rock band Carissa's Wierd.

Musical style

Musically, Songs About Leaving is as an indie rock, ^[1] chamber pop ^[2] and slowcore ^[3] recording. The arrangements feature minor key guitar arpeggios, staccato piano motifs, subtle violin parts, and understated percussion. ^[4]

Vocals are shared by Jenn Champion and Mat Brooke, whose understated performances are central to the album's tone. ^[5] Their vocal interplay often overlaps ^[1] or double-tracked. ^[6] Champion's quavering delivery and Brooke's subdued tone have drawn comparisons to Cat Power and Conor Oberst, respectively. ^[6] At times, the songs sounded "more like demos than finished products", which a critic from Pitchfork found fitting. ^[1] The album explores themes of regret, loss, rumination, and depression. ^[4] It is described by Tom Scanlon at The Seattle Times as being "laced with battery-acid bitterness". ^[7]

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
Pitchfork	8.0/10 [1]
Sputnikmusic	[4]

AllMusic reviewed Songs About Leaving as offering up "hauntingly poignant vignettes", stating that its "abundance of down-turned emotional muck may not be everyone's cup of tea, but it definitely stands out as something not quite so ordinary in the musical landscape". ^[2] Paul Iiams from Arizona Daily Wildcat found it incredibly annoying and frustrating due to the singers' voices, despite the "pretty good" music. ^[8] Pitchfork gave the album a positive review, stating that it "sounds fascinatingly hesitant", and is "all the more devastating for being the band's final act". ^[1] Sputnikmusic gave the album a positive review describing the album as "a perfect metaphor for depression" and that "it makes you feel like shit, even when the music is catchy". ^[4]

Track listing

All songs written by Carissa's Wierd.

No.	Title	Length
1.	"You Should Be Hated Here"	2:38
2.	"Silently Leaving the Room"	3:20
3.	"So You Wanna Be a Superhero"	3:39
4.	"September Come Take This Heart Away"	6:28
5.	"Ignorant Piece of Shit"	3:15
6.	"The Piano Song"	2:04
7.	"They'll Only Miss You When You Leave"	4:46
8.	"A New Holiday (November 16th)"	1:52
9.	"Farewell to All These Rotten Teeth"	5:23
10.	"Sofisticated Fuck Princess Please Leave Me Alone"	3:08
11.	"Low Budget Slow Motion Soundtrack Song for the Leaving Scene"	5:16
12.	"(March 19th 1983) It Was Probably Green"	2:53

References

1. Deusner, Stephen (2 December 2010). "Carissa's Wierd: Songs About Leaving". Pitchfork . Retrieved 13 March 2011.
2. Blanford, Roxanne. "Songs About Leaving – Carissa's Wierd". AllMusic. Retrieved 8 November 2010.
3. Rosean, Samuel (31 January 2019). "The Beginner's Guide To: Slowcore". Drowned in Sound . Retrieved 6 May 2025.
4. Trebor. (19 April 2014). "Carissa's Wierd: Songs About Leaving". Sputnikmusic . Retrieved 9 October 2019.
5. Ham, Robert (8 October 2010). "Seattle-based indie band Carissa's Weird rereleases three albums through Hardly Art". The Oregonian . Retrieved 6 May 2025.
6. Schneyer, Jeremy (16 February 2003). "Carissa's Wierd: Songs About Leaving". PopMatters . Retrieved 6 May 2025.
7. Scanlon, Tom (9 August 2002). "With new album, Carissa's Wierd is at the peak of its gloom". The Seattle Times . pp. H7. ISSN   0745-9696.
8. Iiams, Paul (17 April 2003). "Carissa's Weird: Songs about Leaving". Arizona Daily Wildcat . Retrieved 6 May 2025.