Braid's First Day Back is a fantastic song for mid-90's sing-along emo with midwest flavor. The version on this 7-inch is a little rougher around the edges than the Frame & Canvas version since it is a demo version, apparently. The harmonies and the start/stop bits don't hit quite as hard, particularly in the outro, for me. It is just a little more chaotic and uncontrolled but still quite a good song. I mean "... and the conversation goes.. 'Oh, nevermind...'" is a triumph of a lyric in both craft and delivery.

The B-side sees the band switch lead vocals from Mr. Nanna to Mr. Broach and add in more layering of said vocals for a different feel. The vocals are definitely farther back in the mix like a Promise Ring song. Braid is sometimes hard to pin down to a certain style as they experiment with song structure and alternate these vocal styles. For me, the Nanna songs are my preferred but there are some nice sections where it gets quiet and then builds back up into some chaos and excitement. Overall, a good Braid song but not as good as the A-side or some of the other Braid classics.

Bonus treat that this was the first volume of a Polyvinyl 7" single series but I think they never made volume 2? Fun!