ALL EYES ON ME

Given the burst of this week’s activity and the inherent and occasionally crushing pressure we appear to be putting ourselves under, Track Of The Day action couldn’t arrive in more appropriate form than Salt from the aptly-tilted All Eyes On Me. They are from Boston. They made us and Ben do an impromptu air-band session when the crunch of the track kicks in at circa 37 seconds. We like em. We like em a lot. Salt is the first track taken from their new EP ... What’s important is that this lot have somehow, in our imaginations, managed to lamp the vocal leads of Silversun Pickups and whack them into a pop-orientated Manchester Orchestra whilst slamming in elements of Jimmy Eat World and Get Up Kids all at the same time. Which, really, means we find this emo as fuck – possibly to the extent that it is at odd-ends with the band’s self-described indie pop stylings, but then again what do genres even mean anymore – and there really ain’t nothing wrong with that. Have a great weekend gang. - Killing Moon

This track cuts a no-nonsense figure for itself and holds the poise for the entire 3:50 of the track. A guitar swipes razor-chords in the “and-” beats, while a drizzly ride cymbal maintains the rhythmic flow. The vocal is stoic; almost solemn. “Dirty” conducts a balancing act via its rhythmic accents.

The guitar and what we’re going to call the glockenspiel see-saw the tempo and the tonal register together, picking up where the other one leaves off. The glock sounds slightly melancholy in keeping with the spirit of the song, which, if you know glockenspiels, is no mean feat. The performance is colored by the track’s general sense of atmosphere, a minor I-IV world where the ground and the sky are similar colors, yet different enough to merit looking at both.

“Dirty” reads like a confession, except, like one of those “here’s the twist!” movies, we realize that the confessor and the confessee are not necessarily different people. The vocal seems to be talking to itself – yet the color of the song makes us realize that we might be the “self.” “Dirty” pulls a move on us, and it is a sweet one. - CD on Songs