Polar Bear Club - Sometimes Things Just Disappear [Album]

Red Leader

March 21, 2009, 01:57 PM

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Polar Bear Clubs debut E.P ‘The Redder, The Better’ was a breath of fresh air in an over-crowded punk scene full of teenage wannabes. Polar Bear Club are widely respected in the scene for their gruff vocals, excellent song-writing abilities and ability to change tempo perfectly. However, unfortunately it would seem they used up all their good ideas on the E.P and have brought very little new to the table this time around.

There is nothing wrong with the album. It's a good solid attempt at a 21st century punk album it's just that everything is just a little bit too nice. The guitar riffs and solos are good enough, quite angular and suit the mood of the record well, and are also very catchy. Not something I personally want when listening to Punk. Furthermore, lead singer Jimmy Stadt’s mix of gruff vocals and melodic singing work perfectly in the songs, however his vocals underwhelm on certain tracks such as ‘Tried’ and ‘The Bug Parade’.

It is also difficult to not feel that a lot of the songs lack any solid direction and that they have perhaps been hashed together at the last minute. A majority of the songs are slow, favouring melodramatic vocals and vocal harmonies over [what I assume many want to hear] a punky, dissonant, and fast record. Instead you are faced with a depressive set of mid-pace tracks that offer little to excite or entertain. This is not to say that ‘Sometimes things disappear’ has nothing to offer the listener. Album closer ‘Convinced I’m wrong’ suits the more laid back style perfectly. The song opens with an acoustic guitar before picking up the pace and transforming into a full-blown punk ballad. ‘Heart attack at thirty’ is also a track worth giving a listen to, and is easily the strongest lyrically. Stadt sings "There is a man standing by he has a heart attack at thirty/ He wastes his time holding tight the memories of days", lyrically not amazing but one of the better written tracks on the album.

The overall problem I found with the album is that throughout it you can’t help but feel that Polar Bear Club could have tried harder and put more effort in. The whole thing feels a bit lacklustre and lazy. ‘Sometimes thing just disappear’ shows great potential but ultimately just feels a bit empty and falls flat of greatness.

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