The Serious Geniuses – you Can Steal The Riffs But You Can’t Steal The Talent

The Serious Geniuses is the band. You Can Steal The Riffs But You Can’t Steal The Talent is the abnormally long-winded CD name. Pop-punk/distorted indie rock is the genre; and while you may think you’ve heard it before, and you’re probably right, it still makes for an entertaining release to get you tapping your feet, bopping your head and singing along.

From the instant you hear the opening sing/sung line of “While you’re dying for a bed, I’m in mine, awake, daydreaming” on Tour Ture you can feel the album and understand what you’ll be getting for the remaining ten tracks. It’s a mixture of high pitched, nasally vocals singing songs at the top of their lungs (but still singing), distinct, straight forward drum beats and hook after hook of power-pop-punk glory and they do it again and again.

For some, this will be a downfall. After all, it is hard to disagree with the idea that many of the songs follow the same similar structure; but if you can get past that and were previously a fan of the distorted pop-punk/indie hybrid then you’ll find some much deserved solace in the record. On top of the nasally vocals, each song is built on a strong enough hook to grab your attention. It may not always be the most imaginative or original, but its enough to keep your interest from track to track.

Imagine The Ergs with some Superchunk and some occasional Jawbreaker and that’s what The Serious Geniuses are. Just like the latter of the three, the band mixes up the tempo. They normally rest right smack in the mid-tempo range but aren’t afraid to pick it up a notch (Wise) or slow it down a bit (Almost Shameless or the bass heavy Echo Mode). Hell, Station even sounds a bit like Brand New, everything from the depressed vocals to the echoey guitar riff is a constant reminder of Brand New‘s Milestone– and if that’s not a quick three sixty to their sound, I don’t know what is.

It won’t change your life and it won’t make you come back over and over again; but it’s strong enough, catchy enough, and upbeat enough to keep you listening the entire way through and leaves enough of a lasting impression to make you want to pull it out every once in a while.

Plus, they end it off with a great cover of Witches With Dick‘s Die Painfully as a hidden song which is a definite bonus.