
For Tuesday – wrong party
Youthful abandon always looks better in retrospect. That may be due, especially, to the fact that for many, the window in which they are able to cut loose is a very narrow one and replaced soon by responsibilities and the burdens of adulthood.
But, look closer to your wild partying days and next to, hopefully, some grand old times, you may also recollect many instances of boredom, despondency, and the seemingly impossible task of creating meaningful relations. Not many songs get written about this, but For Tuesday have decided it’s a matter worth investigating.
Wrong party certainly is built on the foundation of a dance song played by a rock outfit. But, beneath the swirling vocal lines, underneath the lo-fi production, there’s a whole fortress of anxiety waiting to be opened. A Morrissey track for a night of bass-thumping letdowns.
Five Hundred Bucks – Spinal
Punk rock is an arms race of who can be the fastest and play the nastiest kind of garage music. Unlike other music genres that have achieved some form of mainstream acceptance, there’s no time to loosen your grip on the fast-paced, energy filled-rhythms, before your competitors catch up and replace you. And, you thought divas had in for one another.
This is great fun, of course. Pogoing to slow-paced soulful jams isn’t quite the same experience after all. However, with that being said, the best punk bands also happen to write great songs. Listeners may just be in danger of missing the point what with all the speed, distorted guitars etc.
This is certainly the case with Five Hundred Bucks. Here’s a band with plenty of experience of rocking out, but, also, of labouring over songs. They could be mallrats who’ve never quite grown up enough to find a new hobby. But, when looking through appearances, it is clear that this new punk band, formed out of the ashes of veterans of the scene, have really honed their craft. The result is a catchy, well-produced Spinal.