There For Tomorrow – A Little Faster

In a way you have to applaud bands like Florida’s There For Tomorrow.  On the one hand they’re painfully middle of the road, with absolutely no personality or substance outside the realm of catchy radio pop.  But on the other hand, they know how to work within that predictable formula and over trodden path to emerge with something easy on the ears and relatively inoffensive.  In other words, There For Tomorrow knows how to write pop that stands out, without that annoying, lingering aftertaste that haunts your ear drums for weeks on end.

Their second full length, A Little Faster, might not be the most original piece of music released this year, but then again, that’s not the point.  The album is full of tracks that are both catchy AND memorable.  With There For Tomorrow you don’t just get another compilation of forgettable hooks, no, these hooks are that ones that you don’t mind when you realize you’ve been humming the tracks like “The Remedy” for days.  Tracks like “A Little Faster” and “Backbone” feature chorus-heavy power-pop anthems that really invite listeners to unabashedly sing along.  The bridges also deserve a shout out.  While they are predictably placed roughly three quarters into most tracks, they do deliver a real punch that prevents redundancy from setting in.

But the part that really makes the whole get-up work is the sense of sustained escalation between chorus and verse.  Some may point out that it’s all remarkably similar and over-produced, but that would be overlooking the fact that each song retains an individual impact – something sorely lacking in today’s faceless power-pop acts.

The album also features two acoustic tracks, “I Can’t Decide” and “Burn the Night Away,” which further demonstrate the band’s ability to break out from a rigidly defined mould.  When There For Tomorrow strips down to the basics their enthusiasm remains in tact.  In many ways their acoustic self feels much like The Spill Canvas, with lead vocalist Maika Maile emitting much of that same vocal passion.  His vocal chords quivery softly after each passing phrase, revealing a strong knack for lyrically sensitive narration – hitting all the right notes at all the right times.

Again, there’s nothing revolutionary here, nor anything particularly original.  There For Tomorrow simply exists within and embraces the current radio-friendly climate, while pumping out some very memorable tunes.  This isn’t the type of album that will win skeptics over, but it is the type that power-pop enthusiasts can point to when confidently justifying their taste.