 | Red Pens |
Minneapolis’ Red Pens are a band that seems to be getting out there a little bit more and with good reason, they have a great sound and a lot of energy and some great songs here on their debut record, “Reasons”. So far it seems like they have really gotten some serious local attention but you haven’t heard much on them on the national stage, but I imagine that will probably change here at some point soon because they show some real interesting and promising things on the record here, and seems like they really just need to get out there and heard and the rest will be taken care of.
I have to admit, I think the opening few tracks on the album are generally not the strongest part. You get a lot of a sense of similarity to bands like No Age, Wavves, etc, very lo-fi noise rock bands with vocals that sound like they were recorded with maximum distortion in an echoey bathroom or something. But then after a few fairly straightforward noise/art rock songs, they start to bring much more of a choppy/power chord classic rock feel to the record beginning with “Children and the Kids” that really serves them well throughout the last 2/3 of the record. That song comes in with its Sabbath-ian power chords and splashy cymbal chorus rock out that really feel very rawk and just sound great. The nois-y side trip they take towards the end of the song also deifnitely endeared them to me. The song really brought in a different tone for the record and from then on out it remains very strong.
“Blue Lighters” is a classic straight ahead punk rock jam, then you have got “Weekdays” which is a window into a more fleshed out art rock side of the band, almost in a Pavement-esque kind of sense, but it is an ultimately very, very well done song that would have fit into mid, late 90s lo-fi indie rock so very well. Great song. “Reasons” is where they continue with the more melodious ends of the spectrum and at this point they have really gone completely away from the simple noise rock band connotations. There is melody, there are hooks, it is still in a lo-fi coating, but it is something else entirely.
The last half of the record just brings in huge distortion jams, great hooks, punk rock attitudes, and just an overall great sense of that offbeat alternative noise rock that to me is quite reminiscent of the late 90s lo-fi/art rock movement. In here they have some really cool sounds, and some very cool moments put together that really transcend what first might come off as a band really following in the noise rock mold. In truth, in the end, they go in a very different direction than that, and they have some great songs that work on a lot of levels, well beyond going for a particular sound or not. The closing track “Phase You Out” reminds me of something of a mix between those offbeat Superchunk closing tracks and something more noisy and punk rock, like Sonic Youth or something. Anyway, they certainly have a great sound and good songs to back it up.
I would certainly be curious to see these guys live, looks like they are still just touring around Minnesota at the moment. Hopefully they will get a little more buzz and pub out there and make a tour of the US, they certainly sound like they have the chops to make it work and they have some great stuff to work with here. This is a record certainly worth checking out, and this is a band that is definitely worth keeping your eye on going forward.
BV Rate: 75
Red Pens – Weekdays – From Reasons
Red Pens – Children and the Kids – From Reasons
