California
California
(Blackball)
Where
to begin? As I’ve mentioned many times
on this site, Jawbreaker was a huge
band for me during my twenties. I have tried to track down releases from all
three band members over the years since their disappearance, and drummer Adam Pfahler has always impressed,
especially with the 2006 Whysall Lane
album (still waiting impatiently for album #2), and I think I have an old 7” by
a band named The Moons. I was also a big fan of Green Day, especially the Lookout!
Records-era records, as well as the
similarly fun and energetic Billie Joe
Armstrong side project Pinhead Gunpowder, also featuring guitarist Jason White. Learning that these two
were part of this new project, the Google-proof
California was a clincher for me to
purchase without a previous sound introduction.
This trio, rounded out by bassist Dustin
Clark (of The Insides and Soophie Nun Squad – unknown to me),
seemed to promise a revival of the exciting East Bay punk scene from the late-80s
and early 90s, where one could buy like five albums, ten 45s and a couple of
T-shirts for like $30 dollars via Blacklist
Mailorder. Ah, the good ole days of
getting exhausted and frustrated from reading the endless dogma in the pages of
Maximum Rock-N-Roll, but all the
while voraciously ordering records advertised in the very pages that constantly
railed against commercialism.
The
album opens with the upbeat “Hate the Pilot” that recalls those Green
Day/Pinhead Gunpodwer olden days, with lyrics that call out those who dislike
everything for the sake of disliking, while “Same Boat” brings to mind Unfun-era Jawbreaker with Pfahler’s
ever-inventive drumming, Clark’s gliding low end and White’s chiming post-punk
guitar line. The next couple of songs
also hint at the sounds that I had kind of expected, except not as reliant on
power chords and volume, and resoundingly more adult. Then the record transitions into something
much different. The songs stretch out
and side one closes with “Winners” - a positive outlook on how just getting
through the daily grind and surviving can be something to celebrate. Meanwhile, side two opens with the
acoustic-led duet with Rachel Haden
from the also much missed That Dog. It’s a song filled with a real life melancholy
as it describes the final moments of a relationship that has run its course. There is no last second drama, just a simple
bummer ending (“There was only a last knowing glance / A smile and a wave /
Goodbye and I flew way”). Then comes
along the Hammond organ adorned standout “See Your Friends” – a downtempo
reminder to keep our friends close and not let the drag of depression isolate
oneself. By this point, we start to
realize that this album is really a simple, but incredibly performed and tastefully
recorded timeless rock-n-roll album – not a pop punk record.
Now
that I’m old and have heard what seems like everything, I find that new music
often takes several listens before it starts to show its strengths or
weaknesses. I can honestly say that California gets better with each
listen.
Excellent find.
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