Carry the Zero
{{Short description|Song by Built to Spill}}
{{Infobox song
| name = Carry the Zero
| type = single
| artist = Built to Spill
| album = Keep It Like a Secret
| cover = CarrytheZero.jpg
| alt =
| released = 1999
| recorded =
| venue =
| studio =
| genre = Indie rock
| length = 5:44
| label = Warner Bros.
| producer = Phil Ek
| prev_title = Center of the Universe
| prev_year = 1999
| next_title = Strange
| next_year = 2001
}}
"Carry the Zero" is a song recorded by the American rock band Built to Spill for their fourth studio album, Keep It Like a Secret (1999). It was released as the second single from Keep It Like a Secret in 1999 through Warner Bros. Records. An extended play of the same name was released the same year; it is their first solo EP after the 1995 split EP Built to Spill Caustic Resin.
Background
"Carry the Zero" is perhaps considered the band's most popular song.{{cite web | last=Stockdale | first=Charles | title=Most famous band from every state | website=USATODAY.com | date=October 30, 2018 | url=https://www.usatoday.com/list/life/music/most-famous-band-every-state/135b33b6-cb5d-4bcf-9d38-b76bbbe55e3e/ | access-date=June 20, 2022}} In "Carry the Zero", Martsch "extends a mathematical metaphor"{{cite web | title=Built to Spill carries on the guitar solo tradition | website=TODAY.com | date=April 26, 2006 | url=https://www.today.com/popculture/built-spill-carries-guitar-solo-tradition-wbna12502423 | access-date=June 20, 2022}} to depict a disaffected relationship. Brett Anderson at The Washington Post depicted the tune as a "guitar manifesto in three movements."{{cite news | title=Spill: Its Cuts Runneth Over | newspaper=Washington Post | date=April 25, 2000 | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/2000/04/25/spill-its-cuts-runneth-over/d480e076-54d6-4810-b8b4-9229d8065537/ | access-date=June 20, 2022}} The tune remains a celebrated standard at the band's concerts.{{cite web | title=The 25 Best Rock Acts with Unique Setlists | website=Consequence | date=August 22, 2016 | url=https://consequence.net/2016/08/the-25-best-rock-acts-with-unique-setlists/ | access-date=June 20, 2022}}
"Carry the Zero" has been popular for a generation of indie musicians: Frances Quinlan covered the song on their 2020 album Likewise,{{cite web | last=Pelly | first=Jenn | title=Frances Quinlan: Likewise | website=Pitchfork | date=February 5, 2020 | url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/frances-quinlan-likewise/ | access-date=June 20, 2022}} while Michelle Zauner of Japanese Breakfast revealed it was the first song she learned on guitar.{{cite magazine | last=Pelly | first=Liz | title=Japanese Breakfast on Cosmic New Album, Lifelong Search for Community | magazine=Rolling Stone | date=September 15, 2017 | url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/japanese-breakfast-on-cosmic-new-album-lifelong-search-for-community-202799/ | access-date=June 20, 2022}}
Reception
"Carry the Zero" has received wide acclaim from contemporary music critics. David Fricke at Rolling Stone praised the song's "lyric mix of run-on, conversational syntax and curveball wordplay."{{cite magazine | last=Fricke | first=David| title=Keep It Like A Secret | magazine=Rolling Stone | date=January 26, 2003 | url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/keep-it-like-a-secret-181987/ | access-date=June 20, 2022}} Pitchfork reviewer Jason Josephes called it "downright pretty," noting that it "merges Cocteau Twins-esque guitars and melody with equal sigh and much more articulate lyrics."{{cite web | last=Josephes | first=Jason | title=Built to Spill: Keep It Like a Secret | website=Pitchfork | date=February 23, 1999 | url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/1014-keep-it-like-a-secret/ | access-date=June 20, 2022}} The publication later ranked its parent album among the best to come from the Pacific Northwest, with columnist Evan Rytlewski singling out "Zero": "Although Martsch has often written about how the insecurities of youth trail us into adulthood, he’s never done so more movingly than on 'Carry the Zero,' six minutes of tough love packaged in a hug."{{cite web | title=The 50 Best Indie Rock Albums of the Pacific Northwest | website=Pitchfork | date=September 6, 2016 | url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/9932-the-50-best-indie-rock-albums-of-the-pacific-northwest/?page=4 | access-date=June 20, 2022}} Reyan Ali of SF Weekly called it "a wistful, lonely, rough-around-the-edges tune."{{cite web | last=Ali | first=Reyan | title=Built to Spill: Show Preview - Hear This - San Francisco News and Events - SF Weekly | website=SF Weekly | date=August 14, 2014 | url=https://archives.sfweekly.com/sanfrancisco/built-to-spill-show-preview/Content?oid=3079503 | access-date=June 20, 2022}}
Kevin McFarland of The A.V. Club called it the band's best-ever song: "a dreamy yet surging exploration that displays Martsch at the height of his prowess for infectious melody and arresting solos."{{cite web | last=McFarland | first=Kevin | title=Built To Spill's Keep It Like A Secret is the sound of harmony between extremes | website=The A.V. Club | date=September 5, 2013 | url=https://www.avclub.com/built-to-spill-s-keep-it-like-a-secret-is-the-sound-of-1798240426 | access-date=June 20, 2022}} Chris DeVille at Stereogum complimented its wistful guitar tone, considering it the point within Secret that the album truly flourishes.{{cite web | last=DeVille | first=Chris | title=Built To Spill's 'Keep It Like A Secret' Turns 20 | website=Stereogum | date=February 1, 2019 | url=https://www.stereogum.com/2026996/built-to-spill-keep-it-like-a-secret-turns-20/reviews/the-anniversary/ | access-date=June 20, 2022}} Nina Corcoran, writing for Consequence, admired its spindly guitar work, suggesting its "symphonic outro" justifies the group's standing as "one of the '90s best guitar rock groups."{{cite web | title=Built to Spill in 10 Songs | website=Consequence | date=April 16, 2015 | url=https://consequence.net/2015/04/built-to-spill-in-10-songs/ | access-date=June 20, 2022}} Christopher Porter at The Washington Post opined that "Martsch is a very good pop songwriter [...] "Carry the Zero" [has a] great core melody."{{cite news | title=Built to Spill's Tasty Jam | newspaper=Washington Post | date=October 11, 2006 | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/2006/10/11/built-to-spills-tasty-jam/3f8ced44-ac44-455f-8ba1-a38a508c3e0e/ | access-date=June 20, 2022}} Tom Hughes singled the song out for a piece in The Guardian, calling it "a song that can lay claim to one of the best intros and outros in indie rock. Doug Martsch's golden-toned Idaho outfit roll out all their loveliest soaring hooks, striking a perfect balance between weighty rock crunch and sweet, gleaming twinkles."{{cite web | title=F&M playlist | website=the Guardian | date=July 22, 2010 | url=http://www.theguardian.com/music/2010/jul/22/1 | access-date=June 20, 2022}}
Track listing
- "Carry the Zero"
- "Sidewalk"
- "Forget Remember When"
- "Now & Then"
- "Kicked It in the Sun" (live)
- "Big Dipper" (live)
"Forget Remember When" and "Now & Then" are studio tracks that have been released only on this EP, and as bonus tracks on the double-LP version of Live; the other two studio tracks were originally released on Keep It Like a Secret.{{Cite web|url=https://www.builttospill.com/music/keep-it-like-a-secret|title=Built to Spill|website=www.builttospill.com}}
Personnel
;Musicians
- Doug Martsch – guitar, vocals, producer
- Brett Nelson – bass
- Scott Plouf – drums
;Production
- Phil Ek – producer, engineer
- Steve Fallone – mastering
- Zack Reinig – engineer assistant
- Scott Norton, Juan Garcia – mixing assistant
- Jeff Smith – photography
- Tae Won Yu – design, art direction
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Built to Spill}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:Built to Spill albums
Category:Albums produced by Phil Ek
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