Jeremy Enigk The Missing Link

Less than a year after ex-Sunny Day Real Estate crooner Jeremy Enigk released the acclaimed World Waits comes an EP of unreleased and live, in-studio takes called The Missing Link. All of this, of course, after a decade-long hiatus from his orchestral Return of the Frog Queen, which arrived before Sunny Day’s brief reunion and the subsequent (and severely overlooked) Fire Theft album, which re-reunited Enigk with founding Sunny Day members Will Goldsmith and current Foo Fighter Nate Mendel. This 9-track EP, with four unreleased tracks and five live in-studio cuts, may not be considered groundbreaking material within Enigk’s loyal fanbase, but should be sought out nonetheless.

As with any Enigk offering, the lyrics are often difficult to decipher, while at times brutally beautiful and painfully introspective. Oh John and Chewing Gum are sparse yet stirring arrangements originally intended for The Frog Queen.  The folky groove (dare we use the alt-country tag here) kicked up halfway through the excellent On the Wayside, however, sounds unlike pretty much anything in the extensive Enigk catalogue and worth the ten bucks alone.
 
While rehashed, live in-studio takes are never as enthralling as actual concert excerpts (Enigk’s stage presence in a pint-sized package beckons for a live DVD), this version of Been Here Before provides for a memorable listen, with violins looming larger than theoriginal take, and the church organ breakdown midway through is followed by a surge of big chords and Enigk’s patented screamo, howling falsetto. The brooding piano on the stunning World Waits poignantly complements Enigk’s range as he plaintively pleads “never take the time, don’t break my heart—again.” And when an added guitar plugs in for the final minute, Enigk lets the emo-tion flow and commands the composition with his gifted vocal range. That voice inflection has been namechecked with the likes of Lennon and Bono; majestic and uplifting to some, introspective, boo-hoo histrionics to others, but there is no denying that Jeremy Enigk has already left an indelible mark on the indie rock radar.