OKComputer1016
04/22/09, 10:00 AM
Joie de Vivre – Summer Months
Record Label: Count Your Lucky Stars
Release Date: March 3, 2009
Who?
Self-described as the kind of “band your older brother used to listen to circa August 1997 in a Midwester state,” Joie de Vivre pump new blood into an old style. In fact, Summer Months sounds more like a rerelease than an original album, which may seem like a good quality or a lousy one depending on your personal taste. The albums took six dudes to create, but don’t worry – there’s no ska involved (I checked the album artwork for traces of corny suits or black and white checkers to be sure.) Plus they’re from Illinois, which is an automatic perk on my somewhat-biased scale. Get over it, everywhere else in the world.
How is it?
As promised, Joie de Vivre deliver on that ‘circa 1997’ vibe, using the tried-and-true two guitar method that served groups like Boy Sets Fire so well at the beginning of their career. But absent from the formula is Boy Sets Fire’s trademark anger scheme. Summer Months isn’t a sarcastic title. In fact, it’s about as sunny an album as has ever been made in the genre, even with its contemplative, sometimes dragging vocals. Authentic to the point of mimicry, the group’s take on the style couldn’t be more cliché, but their obvious dedication to the records they replicate makes for a truly earnest feel.
The guitar harmonies on the closer, “The Ship Has Sailed”, are as intriguing as your favorite Grade song, although one can’t help but think the group could benefit from some more structured vocals. Some people are going to really dig this, and some will want to give it a pass; try one song from the album, and you’ll more or less have a feel for the whole thing. Let it serve as an antidote for that person in your life ailing from the pangs of nostalgia.
Track Listing
01. Magnet
02. Local Local
03. Sundays
04. Handshakes
05. It’s Fiction
06. That’s The Hot Part
07. This Ship Has Sailed
Recommended if You Like
Grade, Cap’n Jazz, At The Drive-In’s Acrobatic Tenement
Judge For Yourself
www.myspace.com/joiedevivreband
Record Label: Count Your Lucky Stars
Release Date: March 3, 2009
Who?
Self-described as the kind of “band your older brother used to listen to circa August 1997 in a Midwester state,” Joie de Vivre pump new blood into an old style. In fact, Summer Months sounds more like a rerelease than an original album, which may seem like a good quality or a lousy one depending on your personal taste. The albums took six dudes to create, but don’t worry – there’s no ska involved (I checked the album artwork for traces of corny suits or black and white checkers to be sure.) Plus they’re from Illinois, which is an automatic perk on my somewhat-biased scale. Get over it, everywhere else in the world.
How is it?
As promised, Joie de Vivre deliver on that ‘circa 1997’ vibe, using the tried-and-true two guitar method that served groups like Boy Sets Fire so well at the beginning of their career. But absent from the formula is Boy Sets Fire’s trademark anger scheme. Summer Months isn’t a sarcastic title. In fact, it’s about as sunny an album as has ever been made in the genre, even with its contemplative, sometimes dragging vocals. Authentic to the point of mimicry, the group’s take on the style couldn’t be more cliché, but their obvious dedication to the records they replicate makes for a truly earnest feel.
The guitar harmonies on the closer, “The Ship Has Sailed”, are as intriguing as your favorite Grade song, although one can’t help but think the group could benefit from some more structured vocals. Some people are going to really dig this, and some will want to give it a pass; try one song from the album, and you’ll more or less have a feel for the whole thing. Let it serve as an antidote for that person in your life ailing from the pangs of nostalgia.
Track Listing
01. Magnet
02. Local Local
03. Sundays
04. Handshakes
05. It’s Fiction
06. That’s The Hot Part
07. This Ship Has Sailed
Recommended if You Like
Grade, Cap’n Jazz, At The Drive-In’s Acrobatic Tenement
Judge For Yourself
www.myspace.com/joiedevivreband