Review Summary: A fun and upbeat pop-punk EP, the way Summer music should be.
Summer is the time for fun. Driving to the beach with the top down, you and your girl, a few friends and non-stop fun. That is what Summer is known for, fun. For all major music fans out there, it's also the time for fun, upbeat music. While bands like Fight Fair release surf-punk albums like 'California Kicks', I Call Fives seperates themselves from the everyday thing and releases 'Bad Advice'. This EP is the perfect Summer listen, short and sweet, but most of all fun and upbeat. Releasing the EP after signing to No Sleep Records, I Call Fives are finally getting the attention they deserve. Though they never will forget their New Jersey roots, I Call Fives have become the closest of friends with bands like Washington Square Park and The Wonder Years. These friendships help the band to tour more and get bigger with each and every show.
The thing that makes 'Bad Advice' such a fun and catchy listen is the fact that it never tries to be anything else but a fun Summer release. Every track, excluding the final acoustic track, is fun, upbeat and ultra catchy. With the opening track 'Hand Me Down Luck', you already find yourself jumping around and having fun. Though some complaining might be heard about Jeff Todd's nasally vocals, he fits the music and at times manages to break away from the higher sound to show us some variety. 'Hand Me Down Luck' gets your head bobbing and the mood set for the rest of the album, it does a perfect job at setting you up for the rest of the EP.
'Elevator Music' is, to me, the strongest track on the record. The chorus is the catchiest on the album and the song just manages to be extremely fun not only to listen to, but to sing along with. "I hope this song/is the elevator music/on your way to hell/and heres to all the stories that you told so well/and knowing everyone was a lie/and now I think I'm ready to try this out" is the chorus lyrics and it's so fun to sing along with every listen. 'Try Hard to Remember' opens with a catchy guitar section leading right into the fast verse, the drumming fits the song perfectly as it manages to be fast, but stay simple. The chorus guitar riff is ultra catchy and fits right in with the sound of the song.
Lyrically, this album has the potential to capture any teenager since it borders along living life and having the right girl, and while some tracks focus on the success of the band and their life, most of the lyrics stay simple. Staying simple is not so bad though, since the album is so much fun to listen to we can put the simplicity of the lyrics behind us during the listen. 'Easy to Say States Away' and 'Two Days or A Lifetime of Failure' are the two final songs before the acoustic ending. Both songs manage to keep the pace going and keep the pure fun of the album. The bass player shines in 'Easy to Say States Away', which is great since bass is barely audible in 98% of recorded music anymore.
'Take the Fall' is the biggest dissapointment on the EP, just because it doesnt fit. Most bands try to end their album with an acoustic ballad, I don't really see the reason why. It's not that it's a bad song because it's far from that, it just doesnt work as the EP's closing track. Here we have an entirely fun and catchy EP ending with a somewhat sad and slow closer. It would be a great song if it stayed on the acoustic album, but as a closer is completely kills the mood the rest of the EP set up. I Call Fives have impressed me yet again, and are one of the very few New Jersey based pop-punk bands that have made a great name for themselves. 'Bad Advice' is completely worth the $6 buy, and it's the perfect EP to keep in your stereo system for all those Summer drives with your friends.
