Look Now Look Again

Look Now Look Again is the second studio album by American indie rock band Rainer Maria. It is now regarded as an influential classic of second-wave emo.^[1][4]

Look Now Look Again
Studio album by Rainer Maria
Released	April 20, 1999
Recorded	December 1998
Genre	Midwest emo[1]
Label	Polyvinyl
Producer	Mark Haines
Rainer Maria chronology
Past Worn Searching (1997) Look Now Look Again (1999) A Better Version of Me (2001)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
Pitchfork	8.8/10 (1999)[3] 8.3/10 (2018)[4]
Spin	8/10[5]

Critical reception and legacy

In recent years, Look's critical standing has remained positive. In a review of its 2018 reissue, Pitchfork's Jenn Pelly deemed it one of second-wave emo's greatest albums, calling it "a undeniable classic of a time when [the genre] broadcasted an ethic of intelligence." She saw the album pave the musical groundwork for future bands like Rilo Kiley, Paramore, and Camp Cope.^[4] In 2020, Kerrang! included Look on their list of emo's 20 best albums released before the 2000s. The site's Ryan De Freitas dubbed it "a bona fide classic of the genre".^[6]

In a 2019 Noisey list, Matt Lunsford, the co-founder of Look's record label Polyvinyl, placed it tenth out of what he believed the label's 10 most important releases.^[7] The following year, Stereogum's Ian Cohen referred to Look as one Polyvinyl's "formative documents" of Midwest emo alongside Braid's Frame & Canvas and American Football's self-titled debut.^[8]

Track listing

All songs by Rainer Maria.

1. "Rise" – 4:18
2. "Planetary" – 5:21
3. "Broken Radio" – 3:11
4. "Feeling Neglected?" – 4:43
5. "Breakfast of Champions" – 3:37
6. "The Reason The Night Is Long" – 3:48
7. "Lost, Dropped and Cancelled" – 2:45
8. "Centrifuge" – 3:37
9. "I'm Melting!" – 3:14

Personnel

• Caithlin De Marrais – bass/vocals
• Kaia Fischer – guitar/vocals
• William Kuehn – drums
• Mark Haines – producer, engineer
• Elliot Dicks – producer
• John Golden – mastering