These guys land in the territory of the modern alternative rock based pop music. Much of the music here is a bit on the generic side within that heading. The thing is, this is a good album. It could have been a better album if a few of the weaker (and more samey) tunes had been pruned from the tree. Still, a lot of people these days listen to single songs rather than albums, so that's probably only so much of a complaint.
This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2017 Volume 1 at lulu.com/strangesound.
Track by Track Review
Galaxy
The keyboard sounds that start this lean toward space rock. As the fast paced energized music joins this comes in closer to modern pop. Yet there are hints of some of the modern post prog stuff here.
Hummingbird This is much more of a typical alternative pop rocker that you might hear these days. It has plenty of emo in the mix along with other sounds.
Gone Gatsby
Here we go with another rocker. This has more energy and meat on the bones. It's fast paced and quite cool.
Summer Radio While there isn't a big change, this is another effective piece of music. It's solid stuff.
Disco This is one of the cooler cuts here. There is even a bit of a metallic edge to it. It's high energy and catchy. It's not a paradigm shift of any kind, but it is just so strong that it works.
Josephine In a nice change, this comes in with a mellow section. From there it launches into something that's like "more of the same," though. This is a good tune, but not a standout.
Crawl There is a punk edge and energy to this that manages to elevate it.
London This rocker starts off with some punk built into it, but quickly becomes a samey kind of number. Still, it's good enough to stand fairly tall.
Waves The melodic and catchy hooks on this make it a standout tune. In fact, this might be the best song here. The overall format isn't changed much. They just do it with more class on this tune.
Midnight Here is another standout. This has some great soaring melodic sound built into it. The vocal performance seems stronger and packed with more character than some of the rest. That said, I love the Cure like guitar sound, too.
Blinker Although this is reasonably effective, the monolithic nature is starting to get in the way of the enjoyment again.
Tennessee Some meatier guitar and tastier hooks combine to make this one a highlight of the set. It's energized and just so cool.
The Road Here's another that works better. There is a nice balance between mellower and more rocking territory. The tune just has a cool vibe to it.
Whiskey Wrongs This gets a lot of points for variety. It's more of a raw punk based rocker. It's one of the highlights in a large part just because it's so different. It doesn't hurt that it's a good tune with a cool guitar break down mid-track.
