The Tyranny of Distance

1	Biomusicology 4:18
2	Parallel or Together? 4:56
3	Under The Hedge 3:20
4	Dial Up 4:05
5	Timorous Me 4:34
6	Stove By A Whale 7:58
7	The Great Communicator 3:16
8	Squeaky Fingers 3:38
9	My Vien Ilin 2:44
10	The Gold Finch And The Red Oak Tree 1:54
11	St. John The Divine 6:40
12	You Could Die (Or This Might End) 1:30

All Music Guide

With his premiere release on Lookout Records, Ted Leo makes a significant creative leap forward from the body of his substantial catalog. By fusing the punk and retro-pop elements of his musical history with a noisy affection for '60s blues-rock formulas, The Tyranny of Distance showcases some of Leo's best songwriting to date. Laden with falsetto hooks and overtly romantic observations of the world, he is able to control combinations of aggression and sentiment and focus them into highly melodic expressions of pure emotion. Leo places himself next to songwriting greats such as Billy Bragg and Elvis Costello through lyrical wit and intelligence and with The Tyranny of Distance he proves that he is one of the most creative, forward thinking songwriters in the underground. [A Japanese version includes bonus tracks.] Nate Cavalieri

Spin Magazine

Hearts of Oak... finds the former hardcore frontman (Citzens Arrest, Animal Crackers) and mod punk (seven years with Washington, D.C.'s Chisel) penning tight, hooky pop songs that push his register-hopping voice to its falsetto limits. Caryn Ganz