Silversun Pickups

I guess there is a sort of familiarity with them, with the vocal style that reminds of Billy of Smashing ... and song style too -- add in the the wall of sound guitars, and moody post-punk sensibility, with great hooks.

It's kind of funny because I think to myself, oh some My Bloody Valentine fans or some really cool, Hot Topic kid would like this ... and then again, I don't think it is so hardcore in the shoegazer, goth direction -- obnoxiously obnoxious like the HT bands that you can snap off in a list.

In many ways, this is really great dark pop rock ... in the mid-90s this would be called alternative, but nowadays, even though it is currently still indie -- it is some of the more accessible, great, indie rock out there.

I have a feeling they could be really something big, if they are great live

Silversun Pickups - Carnavas: A+
Early Candidate for SL Album of the Year

Okay, let's put it this way -- if you were a fan of Siamese/Mellon Collie era Smashing or maybe The Breeders, why you don't have this album at this point, is really on you at this point. There are so many things about it that are very reminiscent of that mid-90s style ... or if you want to seem more hardcore, My Bloody Valentine

Wall of sound guitars, catchy hooks, great lyrics ... intense moody songs mixed in with great rockers. The album is not uniformly listenable, but stand out songs are really well crafted. From the meandering pop of Lazy Eye to the slow intense Rusted Wheel, there is a great deal of sonic variety. Also great are the straight up, guitar wall of sound rockers, Dream at Tempo 119, Future Foe Scenarios, and Well Thought Out Twinkles. If you think like me, you go 5 stand out tracks, 4 solid tracks, out of 11 -- and go, that's quite an achievement for albums nowadays

Silversun Pickups - Pikul EP: B-

This EP starts out very strong. Kissing Families, Comeback Kid, and Booksmart Devil are equal in stature to some of the best on Carnavas -- in fact, I sit and wonder why some of it didn't cross over into the full length release.

That quibble aside, this SSPU EP has many of the qualities that make EPs equally frustrating and outstanding. This EP shows the range and variety of the band, it is not as polished an effort as Carnavas ... but what EP is, really?

The dark, heavy wall of sound is here, the great hooks, the key difference is that tempos here are slower, somewhat dreamier, and landscape themed, especially the latter 4 tracks of the EP -- I really liked the tighter, focused songs of Carnavas. I liked its focused guitar rock, here it is more indie in feel, jangly slow guitar, naked bass fills -- essentially, less easy to get into, probably less accessible to those who do not listen to indie rock often