Only Thieves – Greetings from Levy Park, TLH

Florida’s Only Thieves may be new to the local scene, but they sure haven’t wasted time getting their name out.  In fact, the band has taken an ambitious D.I.Y. approach and have self-released their debut EP, the welcomingly titled Greetings from Levy Park, T.L.H. to the masses across most online retailers.  They’ve even shipped copies for review across the continent.  Talk about initiative.  Too many new bands either wait around to get noticed or exist in obscurity for years before taking their ambitions seriously.  Only Thieves‘ initiative is refreshing, and based on the EP’s five tracks, well-justified.

Only Thieves debut resembles a low-key jam session between friends.  The songs have a relaxing, organic feel, revealing that the band is pretty comfortable just doing their own thing.  Only Thieves play a rough brand of pop-punk heavy on fuzzy distortion and playful-but-far-from-overpowering hooks.  Lead vocalist Jeremy sounds like a very laid back, higher pitched version of How Dare You‘s Justin Goldman.  In other words, the vocals feel solid and commanding without feeling forced or over produced.

Musically the band subtly draws upon a variety of influences.  While straight up rock frames most tracks, songs like “Hammered for the Holidays” emit a slight midwest country feel.  Meanwhile, the repetitive guitar distortion on others like “Does this Bus Stop at 8th Avenue?” draws loose comparison to garage rock acts like the Black Lips.  Unfortunately, there are times where this repetition becomes tiresome and can even detract from some of Greetings from Levy Park, T.L.H.’s more unique moments.  For example, by the time the third track, “Watertower Scars,” rolls around, the distortion is so overpowering that it blurs the track into the surrounding songs, jeopardizing each track’s memorability – preventing the album from achieving a true focus.  This is something the band will have to grapple with when writing their eventual full-length debut – if they have any hope at sustaining attention past the fifteen-minute mark.

Only Thieves’ combination of D.I.Y. initiative and relaxed but confident delivery marks a good starting point for this young group.  While they keep cohesion despite drawing upon a variety of different styles, even with their strong foundation, their debut EP never really takes off.  Each song has so much potential, but never develops into something truly memorable.  That being said, Only Thieves is a band that I can’t help but want to succeed, so here’s to hoping that their next effort is as directed as it is confident.