Divided by Friday - Maybe in a Memory
Record Label: None
Release Date: March 20, 2008
Now here’s an album for pure enjoyment, the type of album you can play when you are having a house party and want your guests to loosen up and feel good. Divided by Friday’s latest EP Maybe in a Memory is party pop made by four teenagers, still in high school who call Laurinburg, North Carolina home. Their songs have the softcore punk punch of The Summer Obsession, the acoustic rock beauty of The Plain White T’s by way of their single “Hey There Delilah,” and raveling arrangements with a multitude of guitar blades bonded like Bedlight for Blue Eyes and Anberlin. The band’s moods are generally cheery and optimistic, although they do slump into somber shades a time or two to get it out of their system, but otherwise they are good to go at full throttle.
The bubbly skillets of “3 Legends in Steinberg,” “So Long Utah,“ and “On Pacific So Specific” have cheery, optimistic pop punk piping suffusing the rhythm section made by bassist Chris Thomas and drummer JP. The lead vocals of Jose Villanueva deliver a soft melodic resonance while his and Matt Morgan’s guitar playing is loud and vigorous. Matt Morgan additionally plays the keyboards and does the programming for the tracks which he couples with the softcore punk jumps of “Another Day” projecting a likeness to Yellowcard. Divided by Friday’s songs have a sing-along vibe like in “3 Legends in Steinberg” when Villanueva sings, “Times change, but people never do / We both know I changed myself for you / You’re everything that I ever wanted / The only thing that I ever wanted was to see a smile across your face / But now we’re stuck in the same place / Just let it go / The storm is over now / Just let it out / The sun will shine, the tides are turning / The flames may be low, but they’re still burning / Just try tonight / You only get one life to live / So live it out until your days are gone.”
Divided by Friday dive into some hard rock textures in “Extras” liken to Anberlin. The softly strolling piano keys on the outro of the melody give the reverberating chord arrangements a sense of calm while Villanueva’s vocals tailor beautifully to the twists and flights that take shape and hugging the curves snugly. The two acoustic rock tracks “Memory” and “October” have contrasting values. “Memory” projects a cheerful mood while “October” has a glib somberness with sequins of wistful string arrangements and sharp guitar blades that puncture the melodic patterns like piercing needles. The acoustic rock numbers add another vibe to the album that compliments the band’s pop punk make-up and still keeps to a house party revelry.
Maybe in a Memory show signs of a number of pop punk influences, but they also offer a bit more for audiences. Their music is equipped with party pop jets and some acoustic rock cylinders. They play like you would expect a group of energized teenagers to play - with a sense of optimism that everything will turn out okay. Maybe in a Memory is being sold at itunes.
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