Technology has made it possible to make hour-plus albums, but does that mean bands should make hour-plus albums? I’ve heard the argument that it’s good value—more music for the money—but if you stop enjoying it, how much of a bargain was it?

I’m with It Don’t Mean I Don’t Love You from the start. The instrumental “Meet Me in the Morning” with its deeply echoed upright piano evoking loss and frail romanticism is beautiful, and Alyssa Lee’s plaintive “Daniella” is heartbreaking and sweet. Hurray for the Riff Raff’s post-Waits, post-Weill songs of Bywater drama are theatrical takes on the torch tradition, and they balance the musically amateur touches with more knowing performances.

At some point during the album’s running time, I notice songs that let the sounds and textures—the brittle banjo, the ethereal saw—do the hard work, and melodies sound familiar. I don’t take that as a sign of artistic weakness, though. If the album were 40 minutes long, that problem wouldn’t have arisen. Instead, I think of it as a band that recorded just a little too long.