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So here we have two bands, two bands that you wouldn't necessarily associate with each other, but two bands which have certain similarities which, in this warped little world, means they fulfill the needs for a comparison, a record showdown if you will. These are make or break records for both bands in UK terms, so where does this leave us? As they say the proof is in the pudding.
| The Get Up Kids - On A Wire [lp] |
The Get-Up Kids previous two albums 'Four Minute Mile' and 'Something to Write Home About' were perfect examples of the poppier side to this thing we call emo, at their best combining the punky pop of Superchunk, with the emotive slacker vocals of the more recent Promise Ring material, or Mac McCaughan. Their new record 'On A Wire' does not however carry on this trend. It starts so well with the upbeat acoustic 'Overdue', and 'Stay Gone', a track that makes me realise why I still have such a soft spot for them, but it turns so bland and simple. Don't get me wrong; I'm not knocking simplicity. Beat Happening and The Ramones are two of my favourite bands and they defined simplicity, but this is the type of simplicity you'd find in all those 90's Indie records you wish you'd never owned, this is fucking pre-school stuff. Its so annoying, Matt Pryor's voice is still one of the most addictive that can be found, but with tracks like 'Grunge Pig' and 'High As The Moon' supposedly binding this record together, what hope is there. I have no difficulty imagining the Osmonds singing this! I've heard this record at least ten times now and I keep thinking I'm not giving it a chance, but fuck it, I am, and I'm disappointed. Live this band are still great, a real 'falling in love' experience, but they just sound on tape as if they've run clean of ideas.
Nada Surf on the other hand first found, UK fame at least, on the back of Weezer's 'Buddy Holly' single with their MTV hit 'Popular'. At the time the climate was changing, the grunge scene was well and truly in the gas chamber, and the 'college-rock' scene was alive… if only temporarily. The first record 'High/Low' defined this original post-grunge sound, and it shat on anything Weezer have ever released, but as it goes with most things, Nada Surf were quickly forgotten, and when they released their second record 'The Proximity Effect' in the UK, it took nearly a year to find an outlet in their home country, the USA, the country that had previously hailed them as the next big thing. What has happened since then is your guess, but they have returned with a new deal in the UK courtesy of Heavenly, and a record worthy of bigger things. Again starting with a fine acoustic number 'Blizzard of 77'. Is this a trend, the calm before the storm? Who knows?
This record is packed of positive sing-a-long pop songs, which is something that doesn't often happen in today's climate. Single 'The Way You Wear Your Head' and 'Hi-Speed Soul' which has a strong, and I mean STRONG, air of New Order around it. 'Fruit Fly' is reminiscent of Mellon Collie era Smashing Pumpkins, merging with a vocoder enhanced Joy Division. 'No Quick Fix' is the highlight of this record, bringing in elements of Silkworm and maybe some Guided By Voices to boot. It'll be a crying shame if this doesn't get them the attention they deserve.
The outcome then, well, it turns out that Nada Surf return triumphantly as a warm homemade rice pudding, and The Get-Up Kids, unexpectedly, turn out to be a manky old can of peach slices cowering at the back of the cupboard. I didn't see that coming!
dthomas
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