So this is a real game of two halves. I’ve never been overly impressed with Junction 18 but liked them enough to by a CD, while I think Over It are the bees-knees. This EP, a joint effort with eight tracks of stripped down goodness, just reaffirms my opinions. J18 kind of plod along like an indie band at times, while Over It storm through their back catalogue with a quartet of rocking acoustic versions.
The first half of this EP, released on Top Notch Records, features the talents of Junction 18 covering their own songs but in the emo style – stripping down any sign of an electric guitar and asking the big question; is this song good enough to withstand it being stripped of all its comforts? For the most part the first four songs are a bit naff. ‘Lucky As Mars’ is disappointing, while ‘Don’t Go’ sounds a hell of a lot of ‘Big Me’ by the Foo Fighters. Except it’s longer and has a country edge. Ok, so it sounds nothing like ‘Big Me’, it just reminds me of it a bit. Kinda. ‘Coded Message In A Slowed Down Song’ is rather delicious though and the warmer sounding ‘June and the Ocean’ is a keeper. There’s talent in abundance and fans of the band will lap this up but I’m not overly convinced by these four tracks, so they only warrant (3/5).
Over It, on the other hand, are an entirely different prospect. Featuring three songs from the fantastic ‘Timing Is Everything’ album, the band strip the normally fast and furious pop-punk anthems down into little four minute nuggets. Each song works extremely well, with vocalist Peter Munters proving he has a voice as good as any other in the genre. The two guitars work well alongside each other, with Nick Bailey’s fills work surprisingly well in an unplugged setting. ‘Worry Bomb’ and ‘Serial Kisser’ are great songs anyway, so fans will love these versions, while ‘Weightless’ is slightly more up-tempo and arguably is the best track here. If I was to grumble at all I’d say ‘Fall’ is a little too experimental – it’s a great song but perhaps a little too slow in this form, but if that’s the worst I can do then you know it’s a good collection of tunes. (4/5)
This isn’t for fans of Dashboard Confessional as for the most part these are songs that feature real emotions, not the ones aimed at the Starbucks generation. Junction 18‘s efforts don’t quite come off as well as Over It‘s do, but even if you’re not a fan of either band and just want some good songs done slightly differently, this CD is a worth a purchase.
www.junctioneighteen.net
www.overitonline.com
Top Notch Records
Paul