A.D.Smithh/TEENANGER
A.D.Smithh
Hot Nothing // Blew//Rose Records
You know those “eureka moments”? Have we heard of these, are we familiar with these moments? A eureka moment is the sudden realization of a concept that has been eluding you (pissing you off) for what seems like ages. What a satisfying feel, you want to scream your damn head off—I know I do. I do the same thing when I’ve created something that I think is, y’know, good. The reason I mention all this shit is because, imagine for a second, how god damn loud A.D. Smithh’s studio was when he was dialing these lo-fi, catchy, riffy, god-damn-adjective, rock and roll tunes. We’re talking Real Loud Hollering coming out of this studio as Smithh forged 21 minutes of rock and roll out of the ether.
I listened to this album while working ($$$) and it definitely kept me jiving at 5:00 in the morning. My first impression of these tunes was “Damn Smithh has a lot of cool guitar riffs all over this album”. For example, the second guitar part that enters in the chorus of “Every Little Thing Pop Punk”. It’s subtle enough that you may not notice it, but then it suddenly comes up front and center right before the verse starts again. These lead guitar parts add nice texture to the jangly power chords that lead the album from start to finish.
Speaking of start to finish, I really like the lyrics on this album too.
“They take it – that’s what they’re meant to do/
Less for me, and less for you”
There’s something simple and pleasing about lyrics like these. Less for me, less for you -- up and down, left and right, less for me less for you. There’s some feel of evenness in lyrics like this if that makes sense, like a poetic symmetry but thematically. Smithh is a dude who has always found himself marching to the beat of someone else’s drum, literally drumming for other rock groups (Dead Soft; Wishkicker); this album is his foray to the front of the stage, no longer “Standing Dead Center of Someone Else’s Fantasy” (maybe I’m reading too much into this). This is what I mean about the lyrics though – I don’t know Mr. A.D., I may never meet him, yet I learned something about the guy by rocking this album over and over. I mean, that’s kind of neat right (creepy?)?
My favourite track on this album is “Big City Boy”. If you listen to one song on this album, check this one out. I mean, you could also check out first single and accompanying video that was officially released by Smithh, “Always Tempted By the Vice”. Actually, you should do both of these things. And then listen to the album in entirety (3 things total).
After listening to Smithh, I had to check out Dead Soft and kind of compare the sounds y’know? My conclusion was that yeah, Dead Soft is definitely dope, but to label A.D.Smithh’s Hot Nothing as something like “the solo release of the drummer of this band” would be completely disingenuous. It goes without saying (watch me say it anyway) that Hot Nothing stands on its own as an incredibly solid debut album by a seasoned musician. Maybe Dead Soft could do what KISS did in 1978 – every member releases an album and puts their face on it. Until then, check out Hot Nothing and then check it out again because 21 minutes flies by when you’re bobbing your head to catchy choruses, lyrics that are sung with real feel (whatever that is), and some super riffy guitar, uh…riffs.
- Alex Bennett
TEENANGER
Good Time // Telephone Explosion
Toronto music scene vets TEENANGER are in their element on new effort Good Time. With their last release cycle marking over ten years as a band, TEENANGER found themselves in stride with momentum. Their 2017 self-titled built them wider notoriety catching the world up with what Toronto and the rest of Canada had been privy to for years. Upon wrapping up a momentous tour cycle and eager to begin writing a follow up, the four-piece found themselves struck with a months long writer's block. This prompted members questioning how to move forward, pondering adding members and even dissolving the band. It took a change of scenery to spark the creative motivation to begin writing Good Time. The band vacated the rehearsal space they had occupied since their inception and took over a former reggae studio/after hours venue, building Studio Z to record as they wrote, giving the band a new freedom. The newfound energy would soon become a trade off against the vermin, major floods and CO2 leak they would have to endure throughout their tenure at Studio Z.
One would expect shaping a record in a space co-inhabited by rats and constant mold would produce an album littered with darkness and dreary melody. Good Time displays TEENANGER’s ability to persevere through the bullshit producing their most fun record yet. The album is riddled with melody and flexes their pop sensibilities. It expands off the new wave sound experimented on their self-titled, pushing into further territories often favouring colourful synth-use over pointed post-punk guitar leanings. The record also sees member Melissa Ball gaining an expanded role on vocals. Ball’s contributions push the record to greater levels. Vocal harmonies on album single “Trillium Song” and the overlapping countering vocals throughout the outro of album opener “Beige” mark high points on the album.
While Good Time marks an even further step from the jangly garagey post-punk of earlier records that first put TTEENANGER in the ears of Canadians, it shows their ability to endure. For over ten years they’ve been a pillar in the Canadian music scene, managing to expand with each release into new sonic boundaries.
- Kennedy Pawluk
