‘Something To Write Home About’ is quite possibly my favourite album of all time. Even when The Get Up Kids slightly turned around their sound I had a massive soft spot for them and I was gutted when the band announced they were calling it a day. Guitarist Jim Suptic’s new project, Blackpool Lights, are a throwback to that ‘Something…’-era TGUK. They’re not exactly the same, nor are they quite as good, but if you’re after a fun, summery pop-rock album in a smiliar vein, this is the record for you.
‘This Town‘s Disaster’ is a really bright, fun record full of singalong hooks. It’s an upbeat record – the drums pound and the guitars rock along with Suptic’s familiar vocals. ‘Blue Skies’ and the classic ‘Empty Tank’ are almost Get Up Kids songs that were cut from ‘Something…’, full of hooks, melodies and carefully crafted. Even ‘Crash Sounds’, the token ballad, sounds great. And this is coming from someone who usually hates the token ill-placed slow song.
My lazy comparisons to The Get Up Kids don’t really do ‘This Town‘s Disaster’ justice as this record is great in its own right. It’s just I get that same kind of happy feeling I always got from the Kansas crew while listening to this. It’s bright, breezy and one of the best records you’ve probably not heard of yet this year.