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Oh, the jokes I could make if this album stunk. "The
Comas? Yeah, this album put me into one!" But the
fact of the matter is, A Def Needle In Tomorrow, does
nothing to deserve such a cruel remark.
Wearing the Chapel Hill badge on their sleeves, The Comas
create a quirky and catchy brand of psychedelic-laced shoegazer
pop. The uniqueness of this two-girls-and-two-guys combo comes
in the textures, not just in the male and female vocal possibilities,
but also in the fact that aside from the standard drums, bass
and guitars, there are also violins, keyboards, samples, and
even a touch of turntable work from drummer John Harrison.
Others drop by to help out with trumpet, banjo and additional
guitar as well, rounding out the already lush sound.
From quiet lullabies, to bouncy pop numbers and everything
in between, The Comas are consistently clever and charming,
so much so that it would be hard not to enjoy at least a few
songs from this album. The band drifts a little from time
to time, allowing its slowcore side to sneak in and take over
for a moment, giving the point of the song a chance to escape,
and the songs often just fade away, rather than come to an
actual end, but it all seems to work, for the most part. "Arena"
may not grab you right away as the opener, but "Tiger
In A Tower" makes the ears perk up a little more. Then
comes "Wicked Elm", rocking harder and with a lower
production quality than the others, but it is thankfully countered
by the gentle and lovely "All Over The School."
Things go on this way for the remainder of the album, raising
your hopes with one track, and lowering them a bit with the
next. Tracks like "Sweet Sweet 69" are definite
highlights.
This is obviously a band trying to find its own style, as
The Comas often come off sounding a little too much like their
influences (Superchunk quickly comes to mind). This
is an album full of ups and downs, and is one that occasionally
gives the feeling of what should have been a really good EP,
but was instead stretched out to fill a full-length album.
So although no new ground may have been broken here, the few
glimpses at brilliance lead us to believe this is a band capable
of something great.
— Eddie Fournier
Track Listing:
- Arena
- Tiger In A Tower
- Wicked Elm
- All Over The School
- Rancor
- Sweet Sweet 69
- Tired
- Sister Brewerton
- Centipedes
- Free Burritos
- Pa Mac
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