Artist vs Poet – Self Titled

Fearless Records used to be a label that I would be excited to see a new album from. I was just getting into the whole underground scene and Fearless were one of the labels making a name for themselves. Releases by Bigwig, Dynamite Boy, Sugarcult, Plain White T’s (their early stuff), The Aquabats and the occasional compilation always caught my eye. Sporadically they would throw out an album I wasn’t a fan of (Brazil and, gasp, At The Drive-In) but they were still bands that I could respect and see why so many people loved them. Now the wheels have turned and instead of gingerly anticipation a newFearless release, I often dread it and write it off before even hearing it. Why? Because now they give me stuff like this.

Artist vs Poet‘s five song EP is a simple pop album with a tinge of emo that offers nothing new, exciting, innovative or really entertaining. The vocals are high pitched falsettos that try and soar to be sung with arms outstretched. The music is equally as polished and generic. The engineering and mixing fail to give the record any sort of kick but instead flatten it out for ipods and online radio listening pleasure.It sounds like any of the recent Fearless acts, be it Mayday Parade, So They Say, Every Avenue, The Morning Light or The Maine. The only song that escapes the pop-emo formula is Lisa Marie which still sounds flat and expressionless. Backed with some drum samples, the song sounds like a painfully weak rip off of Master Suzuki by Jupiter Sunrise (which is, coincidentally, Jupiter Sunrise‘s weakest song).

The songs always mix in computerized samples to create a slight “dance-pop/punk” sound, but do it so minimally that you wonder if they meant to do it or just forget them in there. It becomes distracting rather than endearing, see Infallible Remedy for an example. On All In, the band finally sounds honest and for that they get some credit. The acoustic closer starts off very strong with some slight nods to some earlyPlain White T’s. The song steadily defends themselves against disbelieving skeptics and critics – like myself I guess – and it is the only song that sounds actually sincere and stands out. Unfortunately, All In isn’t safe from the engineering and production faults and as the song progresses the computerized beats fade into the background. Mix that with the polished piano and the song becomes too flat halfway through to retain your attention.

The sole saving grace of the record is that it’s only an EP. At five songs long you’re not subjugated to the painfully forgettable pop for as long as you would be on a full length; and for that I’m thankful.