When Beach Slang broke through in 2013 with killer debut The Things We Do to Find People Who Feel Like Us (QRO review), channeling the fuzzy, emotional indie-rock that gave alternative it’s ‘alt’, it almost seemed too good to be true – and it almost was. Earlier this year the band cancelled a show and declared that they’d broken up, eventually losing drummer JP Flexner, and then just last month guitarist Ruben Gallego was also kicked out (for sexual assault allegations). But A Loud Bash of Teenage Feelings is still that great indie-rock.
The album title does tell you where it’s coming from & what it is, but the record lives up to it, not down to it. There’s a great, active press to the emotion of tracks such as opener “Future Mixtape for the Art Kids”, “Spin the Dial”, and “The Perfect High”. While there isn’t a whole lot of variation (does get more expanding near the end with “Young Hearts” and “High”, before the restrained closer “Warpaint”), it is more than okay just hitting the same great note.
Admittedly similar to their last album, but there was absolutely no reason to change Things. Hopefully Beach Slang can stay on this great Bash.
