Last Year "Pictures, Letters & Memories" CD
[Goodlife]
Damn you, shitty production. This band writes some great pop punk/emo/melodic hardcore songs... I don't care what you call it, these guys are good at it. But son of a bitch, do they realize how bad their recordings sound? Nothing kills a great song faster than a thin, powerless recording, and these guys have suffered from that problem since day one. They sounded like shit on the "America's Hardcore" compilation, and they sound like shit here, albeit this is a little bit more listenable. But still, the vocals are way too loud, there's no low-end, the drums are way off in the distance, everything is thin... there's just zero force. The vocal harmonies and the acoustic guitars are the only things that possess some sort of tonal substance. It's ridiculous. I can't imagine any band suffering from this problem so consistently. I'm also confused about how shitty the layout is here. Usually Goodlife has some decent looking records, but this thing looks awful. It's because they let the band do the layout and the band obviously has no clue... most of the text is incredibly pixilated, some looking like it was printed from the internet, some even worse. The fonts are all very plain, especially for the lyrics (although at least that aspect of the booklet is clean), and the imagery is a little bit blurry and pixilated as well. Totally unprofessional. I can understand wanting to be in control of everything, but next time these guys should let the label handle the visual end of things. The lyrics are about girls. I'm not a big fan of that shit because so few bands can cover such topics with any sort of imagination. "For this I can't forgive the pain you've caused, And the pictures from that time are burnt and lost, In the mirror you see only futures smile, But lives you live are cursed with your denial..." No thank you. Lyrics aside, these songs are so damn catchy... I would love to hear this with a better recording. These guys need to do one of two things: A. Save up some money and hit a real studio next time, or B. Bust your asses and get on a real label that can give you a proper budget to put out a record that sounds and looks as good as it should. It pains me to hear such talent going down the drain... I mean, they're not original, so call me a sucker, but I love a good song with a memorable chorus. Somebody help get this band on the right track, please... (4/10)
Running time - 18:45, Tracks: 5
[Notable tracks: My Old Friend, I Know]
Goodlife Recordings - http://www.goodliferecordings.com

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