Record Label: Suretone/Interscope
Genre: Rock
Band Link:
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Eastern Conference Champions are not without their faults, but I was immediately drawn in by the snare-rolling percussion, orchestral and polished textures, and their immensely likable, upbeat approach.
Their major flaw can be a dealbreaker – the vocals. The vocals exist at some horrible crossroads between Nasal, Twangy, Yarly, and Mush-Mouthed. It’s like Bob Dylan huffing helium with Bob Mould. But I was shocked at how quickly I – a person who ordinarily cannot stand unsavory vocals – accepted it and dug the band nonetheless. Oddly, this band that I’d never heard of is somehow up there with Husker Du, Primus, Rush, and Tom Waits as artists I instantly liked even though the vox are an acquired taste to most humans and outright painful to dogs.
This band throws a lot of crap at me, and I still manage to like it. “Some Sorta Light” has piano, sleigh bells, and moments of mostly unaccompanied vocals. “Stutter” plays up the piano in an even more classical style, and “Pitch A Fit” is quiet, sadsack filler. But yet… it’s good!
The more successful songs are sublime – “The Box,” “Noah,” “Single Sedative,” “To the Wind,” and “Nice Clean Shirt” are some of the more appealing tunes, with hypnotic, rollicking drums, a good guitar sound, and feel-good melodies.
I would rate them higher, but like many orchestral-like rock bands, they’re more about the experience than the song. I fully enjoyed listening to the album, but I couldn’t tell you a line of lyric or hum any of it afterwards.
Bottom Line:
Notable Tracks: The Box, Noah, To The Wind
Overall Rating: