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Joshua
Baggage EP
(Engineer
/ Trece
Grabaciones)
Joshua are quite the emo anomaly; once the darlings of the genre,
their presence went from the thoroughfares of Napster’s
best days to the unfortunate mumblings of “what ever happened
to?” and the occasional joyous find at local Mom and Pop
record stores. Capturing much of the attention in their early
Doghouse days, they reached a pinnacle through, of all things,
a self-titled single that still holds their two finest offerings;
“Divide Us” and “Your World is Over.”
It is quite strange to think that while many of their counterparts
(who ply their trade in very much the same scope) have ascended
to far greater heights, Joshua have never scaled higher than
occasional scene reminiscence and the inquisitive wondering
of lost potential. Nonetheless, while they floated very much
under the radar (I thought, at this point, they had clearly
disbanded), their music never waned from the early musings they
exhibited with convincing ability.
And indeed, it seems it has come time for their last hurrah;
the Baggage EP is in fact their bidding of farewell.
This joint release between English label Engineer and Spanish
collective Trece Grabiciones, while musically sound, is perhaps
not the best representation of their seven-year career. Baggage
features five tracks (two of which are acoustic) that lean far
more towards the undemanding side of indie rock rather than
the sagging, emotional drain of their earlier work. The EP opens
strong enough; “A Better Place” exhibits fluffy
guitar riffs coupled with an extremely endearing refrain that
finds its roots entrenched in boyish 60’s melodies. It
is by far the release’s most compelling offering: neatly
written, well-produced, while demonstrating a knack for radio-friendly
“oohs oohs” and sugar-soaked harmonies.
“Repetition Forever” can be best described as a
struggle between being calculatedly E-M-O and the more airy
rock threads “A Better Place” exhibited. For the
most part, the tune isn’t bad by any stretch – never
to flail aimlessly at any one recognizable trap said three-letter
genre is known for; but never really sticking it in any forceful
manner. The song, for lack of a better explanation, is just
there - not quite rockin’ out, but not quite being a black
hole of watery, weary songwriting. The real gem of the bunch
is “Perfect Man,” a no-nonsense pop-rock number
that could have easily found itself as musical accompaniment
to any nostalgic, 1960s one-hit-wonderdom; sounding at times,
ever so similar to “That Thing You Do.”
There is little to be said about the EP’s acoustic tracks.
Neither exceeds the mark of teary-eyed guitar twiddling, and
both hash through nothing novel or remotely interesting for
that matter. It leaves Baggage very brief, and for
a parting shot one would probably want a little more. Nonetheless,
the EP shows their songwriting at its most progressed; evolving
from the extremely raw, and potently scarring constructs of
their earliest material, to the more sophisticated, refined
approach found here. In a sense, it mimics their career: a few
bright flashes, a disappearing act and before you know it, a
goodbye.
Reviewed by
Billy Maulana
April 21st, 2004 |
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