anamericangod
07/09/08, 07:01 PM
Dropout Year - On a Lighter Note
Record Label: None
Release Date: June 24, 2008
If there's one thing I love more than songs of spite, it's songs of spite made to sound so damn elegant. This is what The Dropout Year have done with their acoustic EP On a Lighter Note. They've taken songs from their previous albums Seven Unreturned Phone Calls and Best Friends for Never and untransformed them into melody-filled acoustic versions of their former selves. The replay value of these six tracks is high, to say the least. Catchy, addictive, sing-songy - take your pick. Listeners already familiar with the band's prior work will enjoy the little extras that have been layered into the tracks. With a winning combination of hand claps, jingle bells, gang vocals, and string instruments, The Dropout Year breathe new life into these songs (did I mention hand claps?).
The instrumentation borders on gorgeous at times, with individual strings able to be heard, and the rest of the instruments working together nearly flawlessly. However, on occasion, the vocals sound slightly overproduced. They don't sound bad, but it's one of those situations where a little bit of roughness would have gone a long way. Think about Straylight Run's self-titled album compared to the original demos: good songs, but at times feeling like they could have just been that much better.
The Dropout Year have stumbled onto a winning formula here, and fans are in for a real treat. There's a chance some might enjoy the acoustic versions more than the originals. While the past EPs were straight up pop-punk records, On a Lighter Note shows that the band is capable of a wider sound, even if they are only giving us familiar songs as evidence.
All Time Low, Mayday Parade, Hit the Lights
myspace.com/dropoutyear (http://www.myspace.com/dropoutyear)
Record Label: None
Release Date: June 24, 2008
If there's one thing I love more than songs of spite, it's songs of spite made to sound so damn elegant. This is what The Dropout Year have done with their acoustic EP On a Lighter Note. They've taken songs from their previous albums Seven Unreturned Phone Calls and Best Friends for Never and untransformed them into melody-filled acoustic versions of their former selves. The replay value of these six tracks is high, to say the least. Catchy, addictive, sing-songy - take your pick. Listeners already familiar with the band's prior work will enjoy the little extras that have been layered into the tracks. With a winning combination of hand claps, jingle bells, gang vocals, and string instruments, The Dropout Year breathe new life into these songs (did I mention hand claps?).
The instrumentation borders on gorgeous at times, with individual strings able to be heard, and the rest of the instruments working together nearly flawlessly. However, on occasion, the vocals sound slightly overproduced. They don't sound bad, but it's one of those situations where a little bit of roughness would have gone a long way. Think about Straylight Run's self-titled album compared to the original demos: good songs, but at times feeling like they could have just been that much better.
The Dropout Year have stumbled onto a winning formula here, and fans are in for a real treat. There's a chance some might enjoy the acoustic versions more than the originals. While the past EPs were straight up pop-punk records, On a Lighter Note shows that the band is capable of a wider sound, even if they are only giving us familiar songs as evidence.
All Time Low, Mayday Parade, Hit the Lights
myspace.com/dropoutyear (http://www.myspace.com/dropoutyear)