Metropolitan

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http://www.metropolitansound.com/metroinfo.html - Metropolitan

Arlington modal-rock trio Metropolitan doesn't do anything very different on its third album, "The Lines They Get Broken" -- it just does it bigger.

With the help of co-producers Archie Moore and Jason Caddell, and what sounds like more overdubbing than in the past, the band has crafted a denser, more immediate sound. While the back-and-forth interplay between singer John Masters's noisy guitar and Shyam Telikicherla's agile, wide-ranging bass is still central to the threesome's style, the music's overall motion is more direct. There's even one song, "Made the Cut," that rides a bluesy shuffle.

"Is It Too Loud?" asks one tune, and this album does feel, if not actually sound, more boisterous. This time out, Metropolitan skips the brief instrumentals of previous CDs and reduces its music's worldly influences. Drummer Saadat Awan plays tabla, notably on "Pakistan International," but mostly his kit drives such emphatic rockers as "Homeroom" and Headway." The latter name is so apt it could be the album's alternate title.

-- Mark Jenkins, April 2005 - Mark Jenkins, The Washington Post

"The Lines They Get Broken"
(Crank Automotive)
Sounds like: D.C. punk going lo-fi.

B+

What is it about pure pop songs lathered with heavy distortion and outdated microphones that make them appeal to college kids more than the same tune recorded with a piano and acoustic guitar? Whether it's finding beauty and warmth in fundamentally cold sounds or the hint of elitism knowing most people would instantly dismiss it, the trend made famous by lo-fi heroes such as Guided By Voices, Pavement and Archers of Loaf doesn't seem to be fading any time soon. Metropolitan's third full length, "The Lines They Get Broken," however, proves that may not be such a bad thing.

The Washington, D.C. trio has thrown themselves full force behind their pop hooks and "The Lines They Get Broken" plays with an almost adolescent energy. It's less abrasive than some of D.C.'s other well known names, like Fugazi and the Dismemberment Plan, but their influence makes itself clear immediately. John Masters, lead singer and guitar player, has a knack for simple vocal hooks, happily yelping over the fuzz.

When not opting for unnecessary and ultimately boring sonic feedback experiments, songs build nicely on fun chord progressions without feeling dumbed-down. The clear standout is "Letterbox," a bouncy lo-fi equivalent of Harvey Danger's "Flagpole Sitta" (admit it, you still love this song). All tracks, however, have their own specific charms, including the phenomenally catchy closer, "Made the Cut."

- DAN POTOCKI - American University Eagle