All The Dead Pilots - Easily Lost In The Present

A debut that tends towards the dull.

While they are quite close to the Third Eye Blind camp - anthemic chorus, crunchalicious riffage and occasional quiet breaks - All The Dead Pilots' debut disc is certainly an impressive piece of rockin' out. The sound on the disc is satisfyingly full; growling bass-beds are covered by spiky guitar that screams "teen movie soundtrack" louder than any proto-punkers you'd care to name. A bit reductive? Maybe - but it fits, and fits well. The same kind of sanitised crunch that Urge Overkill became is present here, occasionally, though it must be understood that that's not necessarily a bad thing. Sometimes, you want the friendly face of rock, and these guys are probably as close as you'll get without lapsing into the world of the "zany" band.

The biggest problem with Easily Lost In The Present is, unfortunately, that it's written to formula, as far as I can tell. Though you won't be able to put your finger on it, there's a definite schedule that these songs follow: now, the loud chorus; now the scratchy "rock-out!" bit; now the harmonizing. There's a particular satisfaction in it, but this can be amazingly depressive at times, as it gives the feeling of jigsaw-produced songs - each a little different, but largely the same.

Of all the tunes on the disc, it's Silence First that throws the listener the biggest curveball - a Police-like angular melody that sounds like a loping bear. This promise is, unfortunately, cut short by a chorus that reverts to the band's stock barre-chords-and-wails anthemic formula. It's a shame, as these guys are all definitely talented and work together well. Lift the game!

This article originally appeared on splendidezine.com