The Mean Streets of Goleta EP,
Staring BackBefore this CD i'd encountered Staring Back only on the Lobster sampler, and I eagerly awaited the mailman's arrival with this, their first release - raising awareness of the harsh state of Goleta.
Opening enthusiastically, 'What you came for' immediately left me disappointed. It seems ultimately empty, with guitars that seemed to plead for the vocals to hurry the hell up - but, no dice, they're not rushing for anybody, and as a result is consigned merely to the thousand or so pop punk song bin, that all sound tediously similar. By the time it ends and 'Change of Heart' starts up, i'm quickly losing faith in what I thought would have been a CD i'd listen to repeatedly. 'Change of Heart' did nothing to alleviate the boredom induced by 'What you came for', with exactly the same vocal pace and predictable chord progression; the only redeeming feature is the short but sweet 'Change of Heart', which steers the song in an infinitely better direction.
Luckily though, 'The End' bucks the trend slightly, with a Strung Out esque style, albeit with the seemingly stubborn vocals, which absolutely refuse to speed up. And now for the jack in the box - 'That's It' comes flying from the blue and punches you in the face. But a good punch. The frustration you felt toward the first two songs is dispelled in a refreshingly hardcore diversion, and at 1:14 it picks you up and points you in the direction of the next song - complete with highly audible backing vocals and some furious my-girlfriend-just-poured-curry-into-my-PS style drums.
But it's Curve ball time in the Staring Back camp, and 'Mom' reverts back to a much more pop punk orientated song - except this time, as opposed to the regretfully uninspired attempts of earlier, you'll find yourself singing along, pushing repeat and playing air guitar to the extremely well suited solo - superb, and, along with the previous track, shows exactly what these guys can do. In sidewinder style fashion, 'Losing Ground' reverts back to the harder style of play seen earlier, though this time not quite so angst packed; but is once again far more fun to listen to than the first two tracks.
'Every Other Day' opens in a fashion disturbingly similar to Yellowcard's 'Big Apple Heartbreak', continuing it and extending it throughout the song - to be fair, this CD undoubtedly came first, and as a result Staring Back should receive the credit for what is an undeniably catchy riff.
'Don't Be Frightened' is in the same style of 'That's It', yet with softer vocals, from which the end result is a reasonable song; though a slightly longer one would have been more welcome. Ending the EP is 'Remembrance' another fast attempt, but this time with incredibly bad backing vocals, positively spoiling the end of the CD.
The first two tracks and the last seem ultimately out of place, on a CD that could have been oh so much more listenable without their inclusion. The EP definitely builds toward the middle for what is an exciting rollercoaster genre ride, but the start and ending left me feeling sour about the record as a whole. It is clear they possess talent, but I'm not sure this is the best showcase for it...
nick
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