The Age of Octeen

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The Age of Octeen
The Age of Octeen.jpeg
Studio album by
Braid
ReleasedSeptember 7, 1996
Recorded1996
Genre
Length38:07
Label Mud
Braid chronology
Frankie Welfare Boy Age 5
(1995)		The Age of Octeen
(1996)		 Frame & Canvas
(1998)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [1]

The Age of Octeen is the second studio album by American emo band Braid, released September 7, 1996 on Mud Records.

Contents

Released a year after their debut album, Frankie Welfare Boy Age Five, the album is notably 25 minutes shorter and features half as many songs. However, The Age of Octeen made up for this by showcasing greatly improved production quality, and songs are on average three-to-four minutes long, almost twice as long as those featured on Frankie Welfare Boy Age 5.

Songs from the album were included in the Braid compilation album Movie Music, Vol. 2 .

Recording

Braid's debut double album Frankie Welfare Boy Age Five, was recorded at a friend's studio, which allowed them the freedom to record whenever they wanted, writing entire songs on the spot. [2] Frontman Bob Nanna has stated that this excessive freedom and the sheer quantity of songs made the album "unlistenable." [3]

After recording Frankie Welfare Boy, Braid went on tour. [2] Their time on the road helped the band to improve their live performance and figure out what they wanted to do with their albums, which, according to Nanna, impacted Age of Octeen. [2] In particular, the band intentionally placed two slow numbers, "My Baby Smokes" and "Chandelier Swing", as the first and penultimate tracks respectively, in order to guide the album's "flow." [2]

Critical reception

Some have described The Age of Octeen as overshadowed when compared to other albums in the Braid discography. In retrospect, critics have described the album as under-appreciated. [4] Online publication Mr Hipster praised the album in a retrospective review, stating, "This is true emo in its purest forms. (sic) It's as if the band just picked up its instruments and let the spirit carry them. If you’re looking for normal song structure, go listen to some Good Charlotte and leave us alone, but if you want to be a little challenged by complex start and stop beauty, you could certainly do worse." [5] Ryan Reed writing for Pop Matters has called the album "an overlooked mini-masterpiece." [6]

Track listing

  1. "My Baby Smokes" – 3:15
  2. "Nineteen Seventy Five" – 3:04
  3. "Divers" – 3:42
  4. "Jimmy Go Swimmer" – 2:26
  5. "Movie Clock Star" – 5:45
  6. "Eulalia, Eulalia" – 3:56
  7. "Grace Car Part One" – 4:10
  8. "Harrison Ford" – 4:00
  9. "American Typewriter" – 3:19
  10. "The Chandelier Swing" – 3:24
  11. "Autobiography" – 1:06

References

  1. ↑ The Age of Octeen at AllMusic
  2. 1 2 3 4 Pearlman, Mischa (August 20, 2015). "Rank Your Records: Braid's Bob Nanna Rates the Emo Pioneers' Six Albums". Vice . Archived from the original on January 20, 2025. Retrieved December 7, 2025.
  3. ↑ Wenzel, John (May 11, 2012). "Bringing in the String Section with Bob Nanna (Braid)". Vice . Archived from the original on December 7, 2025. Retrieved December 7, 2025.
  4. ↑ "Braid: No Coast". Pitchfork. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  5. ↑ "Braid: The Age of Octeen". Mr Hipster. March 31, 2008. Archived from the original on June 23, 2021. Retrieved December 7, 2025.
  6. ↑ "Braid: Frankie Welfare Boy Age Five / The Age of Octeen". PopMatters. May 20, 2010. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
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