Very few bands can play contemporary emo-pop-punk-rock music that doesn’t sound totally overdone, juvenile, and shallow. Even fewer can make it appeal to a more mature audience. Whether is it an infusion of indie rock, straight-forward pop, or even hardcore, most bands seem to fail miserably at the task.
Springfield, IL’s Park (however) is a band that actually does it quite well. They’ve been around in some form or another since the late 90’s and it’s kinda funny that I recently came across the band because (although I’ve never seen them live) I remember seeing flyers for their shows all over central Illinois when I was going to school at UIUC.
Their latest album Building A Better_______ sounds like cornfields hitting the foamy surf of the west coast in the late afternoon. It has the charm and technical complexity of Midwestern emo (a la Braid) combined with a more laid-back, slick (but slightly dark) SoCal pop-punk sound. The hooks and catchy choruses aren’t necessarily immediate, but they are there. Park isn’t breaking any new ground, but they don’t have to. Building A Better______ is out now on Lobster Records. RIYL: Sensefield, old Cursive, Midtown, etc…
MP3 | Park – Hide And Seek Building A Better______
MP3 | Park – Mississippi Burning Building A Better______
Related posts:
- Review: The Forecast – In The Shadow Of Two Gunmen (or) smokestacks and cornfields
- Review: Bound Stems – The Logic Of Building The Body Plan (or) my kingdom for a trundle bed
- Review: Voltage – Building The Bass Castle, Vol. 1 (or) not at all similar to back in black
- Only Thieves – Greetings From Levy Park, T.L.H.
- Review: Maximo Park – Our Earthly Pleasures (or) hold my head up while I’m falling down
Great recommendation- I have to say my favorite song from “Building A Better ____” is “Angles and Errors” … very tragic sounding in my opinion, at least lyrically.
My main arguement for the overrated bears defense idea is that I heard some jackass on the radio say that the Packers are “more likely to get shutout against Chicago than score 14 points.” That’s rediculous. You can’t bet on anyone shutting out a team that has Favre and Donald Driver.
That being said, I just hope the Packers don’t get shutout against Da Bears today. That would really put a damper on my “Bears defense is overrated arguement.”
Thanks for such a great post! As a Springfield, IL native, I have many fond memories of traveling to UIUC to see the band play when they weren’t playing in town. Way to give ‘em much deserved props!
These dudes are still around? Saw them a bunch because whoever did the shows at the Union had them open for like all the bands that came through. Good stuff – better than I remember.
Cool.
luckily i have had the chance to see them over a million times, and actually got to play a few shows with them, since my friends band was good friends with them…nice guys too