Labels: Doghouse
Review by: Andy Malcolm
Well, the boys of summer return with their first release since that super hard to find Subpop 7″ (which, if you own it, you will personally hand deliver to me right this instant) and their first widely available release since the album. Woah! I guess this is their last Doghouse output too. Get it on green vinyl for extra fun!
So, is it good? Yeah. Not up to the standards of the marvelous 4 Minute Mile album, though the first 3 songs on here probably would have fit on there nicely in terms of style. Unfortunately, 2 of them are going to appear on the new album on Vagrant. What kind of rip off deal is that?! Still, these first three songs are bouncy, catchy, poppy, punky indie rock in true Get Up Kids fashion with spot on whiney vocals and that pure summery sound. “One Year Later” and “Forgive & Forget” are two of their best songs yet, definitely. This band will be heard on the next series of Dawsons Creek. Count on it.
Side two sees the band become Jimmy Eat World. “Anne Arbour” previously was on that Subpop 7″, but this is a different version. Alas, it’s not a song about the Michigan Wolverines college football team’s stadium, just happy go lucky indie rock with added xylophone or glockenspiel or something and tonnes of harmonies. “Mass Pike” brings in piano and a bit of drum machine at the start, as well as some strings later. I think the chorus of this song can be found on the “Clarity” album in fact. Hmm. Well, I hope they don’t become Jimmy Eat World forever, because although JEW are fun at times, they aren’t half tiresome over a full album.
Overall, not their best material, but seeing as they’d have some ways to go to achieve that, I guess it’s forgivable. A nice record that would have been brilliant with a bit of attention.