Phil Ochs is to Bob Dylan as Kind of Like Spitting is to Bright Eyes. You will no doubt recognize this as an oversimplification – if not hyperbole – but the fascinating story behind this recording serves up manifold associations illuminating themes of discovery, rivalry and tragedy, ultimately posing foundation-shaking questions such as "What can one learn from the past?"Recorded in 2004 at L.A.'s Gene Autry Theater on Autry's vintage two-track machine, Kind of Like Spitting deliver a selection of songs from the Phil Ochs catalog. This recording aligns itself with the production of Ochs' seminal records (1965's All The News That's Fit To Sing and 1966's I Ain't Marching Anymore), consisting solely of acoustic guitars and vocals. It also documents a transformation in KOLS – having taken to Ochs as a musical father figure and identifying with his underdog status only to realize he was a brutally narcissistic character who suffered from manic depression and ultimately took his own life in 1976 after a spectacular downward spiral.As Kind of Like Spitting approach a ten-year milepost, having committed well over 100 songs to tape (in the same ballpark as Ochs at the time of his death), Barnett and his rotating cast have paid their dues. For his effort, Barnett has engendered a fierce loyalty from his fan base, not unlike the generation who saw a light in Phil Ochs. With Learn, KOLS perform no mean feat: together, David J and Ben Barnett have felt the catharsis that comes with bearing the torch of a musical ancestor. They have learned the value of songs that didn't top the charts, and accepted a responsibility to persevere in music despite the psychic tolls exacted by pop culture gatekeepers, the meaningless of artificial rivalry, and the sacrifice of safety and commerce.Learn sets the stage for In the Red, Kind of Like Spitting's seventh album, which will be issued on Hush in November 2005.