Labels: Big Scary Monsters Records
Review by: Andy Malcolm
I wonder if the band name is kind of as an opposite to ‘The Get Up Kids’. I have no idea, but I like it as a theory. Beyond that, I’m afraid though that Grown Ups have the misfortune of combining overly exposed modern genres and cramming them onto one record. And it really doesn’t work. The songs are a right muddle of two styles that fit together like the pieces of a bunch of different puzzles that have been punted up in the air and come to rest in a higgledy piggledy heap. That’s exactly what this sounds like. First up, the band is rather content to twiddle their arses off. Over the top of this they layer cheesey melodic punk, gang vocals and gruffness, Algernon Cadwallader and Latterman are drawn upon in equal measure. Maybe that sounds like heaven to you? If so, buy this right now and stop reading, for this is clearly the domain of bros with beards high fiving in a sweaty pit. This music is totally guy music. I would guess that their entire audience is almost all guys. I find it tiring to listen to, rolling my eyes like a near retirement primary school teacher as the young scamps burst out of their chairs in the middle of reading time to go and get the hamster out of the cage and let it loose under the desks. The music scoots around all over the shop, and whilst it’s befuddling me, these oafish bros chime in and ride a bike through it all. This makes me feel so old, I really can’t get a handle on where it’s coming from, it’s fucking ridiculous. Maybe some day Grown Ups will actually grow up and tame their hyperactive streak and polish up their song writing, but in the mean time, I can’t really recommend this to anyone other than happy go lucky dudes who spend way more time outside than I do and think that playing your guitar like you are trying to make people laugh is actually a pretty cool idea.