’ve read many a review in which Proudentall was listed as being influenced by a band called Giants Chair. Of course, upon reading that I immediately set out on a search to obtain some Giants Chair Merchandise- or at least, perhaps, to procure an mp3 or two. Eventually, the search ended with my finding the song “Nondescriptionist Ethic”. I was not amazed at all , and moreover, I was a bit angry that the two bands were compared. What I had previously heard to Proudentall was above average; wonderfully melancholy guitars and strong drumming backed with incredible vocal harmonies. An abundance of ’catchiness’ in each song. Giants Chair, upon first listen, was crap. Raspy singing over randomly thrown together chord progressions- certainly not worthy of my time. My vehemence not only centered around the comparison of the two obviously different bands, but the fact that Proudentall was being likened to a band that was not good in any way. Time Passed, my anger lessened and eventually I forgot about both bands and the ridiculous comparison between them. While record shopping one day, I happened across Proudentall’s “What's Happening Here” in the used CD bin (my friend eagerly snatched the disc out of my hands the minute her recognized what it was), and upon seeing their name (written in hard to read cursive on the jewel case cover) I was reminded of Giants Chair. My palms began to sweat slightly and my mind raced in anger. But before I could destroy anything around me, I remembered that I really didn’t give Giants Chair a fair listen. At home, I managed to find a few more songs by said band and held them in comparison to Proudentall. I ultimately realized that the Proudentall/Giants Chair comparison was not a crock of shit, as I had previously assumed.


“What's Happening Here” as a whole release, follows the Giants Chair formula for the most part, only varying stylistically in their ‘interlude’ type song. That song is droning, poorly recorded never ending song. I don’t grasp how they decided it was a good idea to place such an uninteresting song amidst other, far better ones- ruining the overall ‘feel’ of the album. I have mixed feelings about “What's Happening Here”. It is good, but I cannot say that its quality is high enough to warrant dropping twelve dollars on. I would have hated myself in the morning if I had.