Labels: Crackle Records
Review by: Ian Cavell
The first time I played this 7″ (one of 900 separate J Church singles spanning no less than 25 different labels) I played the flip-side by mistake. The consequence of this was lethal exposure to the amazing ‘8:28’. The downside was that I had to endure the appalling live recording of ‘Back To Hawaii’. To be fair ‘Back To Hawaii’ is probably a good song but this live recording really does shoot it in the back.
But hey, J Church have got this pop-punk thing sussed. They do more than enough to stand out from a million other bands who have got their hands on the pop-punk blueprint with their infectious tunes and the ability to write lyrics that do more than just sound ‘right’. ‘The Dramatic History…’ is a lovely melodic concoction of emo-indie and punk-pop. ‘8:28’ is just as impressive with its brilliantly worked guitars – its just a pity it ends so soon. Both songs are hopelessly addictive and simply demand to be played daily.
The vinyl may look shite and the cover even worse, but J Church are undoubtedly the real reason for owning a record player