The Soft Pack : The Soft Pack

<img src="http://www.qromag.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/thesoftpackthesoftpack.jpg" alt=" " />Maybe, just maybe, there's something to this garage-rock thing. ...
7.1 Kemado
2010 

The Soft Pack : The Soft Pack In the past couple of years, the lo-fi/garage-rock sound/scene has seriously exploded, not just in Brooklyn, but across the country.  Of course, ‘lo-fi/garage-rock’ encompasses a wide range of acts, from the tragically late Jay Reatard (QRO photos) to his least favorite band, WAVVES (QRO photos), and a lot of those bands haven’t been any good.  Garage-rock doesn’t require a ton of musical skill, lo-fi is a lot cheaper to do than hi-fi, and both lend themselves to drunken party-rock (like got-into-a-fight-with-WAVVES Black Lips – QRO live review), leading to a plethora of not-so-great bands.  And that’s too bad, because it puts the entire genre in a bad light, and takes away from bands that do it well, like San Diego’s The Soft Pack.

Previously known as ‘The Muslims’ (name changed due to obvious inherent difficulties, which were somehow great than those for still-called-‘Fucked Up’ – QRO album review…), The Soft Pack made that name for themselves in 2008 with the then-self-titled Muslims EP, delivering solid, enjoyable garage-rock.  For their new self-titled release, they don’t stray that far, a bit more accomplished, and with better production.  The simplistic but enjoyable "C’mon" opens the record with a garage-push jangle that never gets too complex, but also never stops being nice.

The Soft Pack is best when the band leans most on its pressure, like the following garage-road catch "Down on Loving" (which feels like something out of a teen movie of the fifties), or the serious upswing hook to the subsequent "Answer To Yourself".  When The Soft Pack ease up on the pressure, they can feel rather uninspired, such as on "Pull Out" or even keel "More Or Less".  The band is better when they vary the outlook, not their speed: a slight darkness peppers "Tides of Time", while a sunny strum for "Mexico" – though neither are admittedly as fine as the speedy piece in between, "Flammable".

The Soft Pack doesn’t reinvent the garage-rock wheel, but maybe un-invents it, taking away some of the scene additions which has dragged the sound down.  There’s a reason garage has lasted as long as any form of the rock ‘n’ roll.

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