Broadway Calls – Good Views, Bad News (SideOneDummy)
2/5
By: Guss Mariot
Don’t get me wrong, this is an OK album. The songs are catchy, and it’s all very pleasant to listen to. However, that might just be the problem.
Opening track ‘Midnight Hour’ is well selected, with hooks in all the right places, and sets the tone for the record – it’s all solid, but lacking something. Despite calling themselves punks, Broadway Calls have presented themselves as a diet Blink-182 (who, let’s face it, hardly fought for social reform).
Take the album’s first single, ‘Be All That You Can’t Be’ - it has every quality a single should have, and is remarkably clean cut and infectious. Just like the rest of the LP. Sadly, again just like the rest of the album, any hint of attitude has simply been edited away. The production and mixing simply hasn’t left any grit.
As result, this album will simply blend in with every other in the current ‘punk-pop’ scene. This may be a good thing; it will certainly shift units, but others will see this as a very restricted attempt to rebel, or see it as too familiar and commercial. And those in the latter camp are far closer to being correct.
Good Views, Bad News held the potential to evolve the band’s craft. Having already toured with the likes of Alkaline Trio, Broadway Calls have proved they have what it takes to do extend beyond their limitations. However they didn’t fulfil said potential, leaving this as the sound of a missed opportunity.
Artists in this article: Broadway Calls
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