Last November - Tug o' War! [EP]

Southern Tracks Records / MMG

This is a slightly unfortunate set of circumstances I find myself in. Only the other day I saw Last November's video on YouTube (by complete coincidence) and I remember turning to my brother, both agreeing that the band was dire. Come to think of it, I think I was looking up skateboard accidents, so I guess this would be a recommended alternative as Car Crash TV. The song I am referring to is ‘Julie’. I think we’ve had quite enough of naming songs after females, plus including a chorus involving a revolving lyrical spin of that same word in ‘quirky’ and partial rhyme is not the key to success. If you play this in the background and minimize the window, what you hear is a group of twelve year kids giving music a bash at a talent competition in your local village. However, Last November are not twelve and perhaps prematurely, I wouldn’t say there is a huge amount of song writing talent here. I wouldn’t want to make an assumption on the rest of the EP after just hearing 'Julie', however with it being the first track on the album, my tedious fingers tap the table with rhythmic fashion as I desperately want to hit ‘skip’. But I braved the audible pleasure of Last November and can confirm it gets no better than ‘Julie’.

Time to delve into the trusty biography just in case I stumble across a gem of information which can turn this review around. The opening line reads ... ‘With a diverse brew of quirky, yet memorable pop music accompanied by honest and thought provoking lyrics’. The good news is I did use the word ‘quirky’, but the rest of the sentence is far from my interpretation. I wouldn't call:

"Julie, you can’t be, the one who saves me (woah, woah) / cos I'm head over heels / I'm going crazy", 'thought provoking’ lyrics?! My only thought would be, I bet Julie is distraught that she bumped into these chaps and had this song written for her. I'm one song in and its all going wrong for Last November. I find out one of their previous releases was ‘Teen Anthem of 2009’. I can disregard that. Furthermore, that single was released in none other than ‘Journey’s Footwear’ stores. Before you ask, oh yes, this was in EVERY 'Journey's' store nationwide.

I don’t know whether to be insulted or amazed by some of the artists Last November have shared the stage with. These include: Plain White T’s, Pink, Train, The Bravery, The Almost, Mute Math, Family Force 5, Interpol, They Might Be Giants, Chris Cornell, and more. What is this world coming to? It’s only at this point I realise I have four more fascinating wonders of the Last November EP to go. Song two is called ‘Georgia’ and I was praying that this was not a reference to another girl, in hope that it might refer to the US state. OH MY GOD, PLEASE STOP. Its about another sodding girl, what is with this band? Are they going through their high school yearbooks and looking at every girl who has rejected them? I can’t stomach much more than half way of this song. ‘Firefly’ isn’t even worth mentioning. Its lyrics include stunningly exciting topics such as, tying your shoes, irrelevant references to empty jars, boys and girls.

We’re nearly at the end, sorry to keep you all. I'm suffering, so I might as well spread the enthusiasm I feel. Just when I was thinking things couldn’t get much worse, ‘Good Luck Charm’ has the exact same opening riff as Cornershop’s 'Brimful Of Asha.' Enough said. The last track is perfectly titled ‘Down and Out’, because that is precisely where the band is heading. For future reference LAST NOVEMBER, don’t start the final song of your EP with ‘I know he’s touching you, in places I used to’. Please make this band go away. Ejects CD. Thanks.