Sleepaway

A more cynical person might propose that the reason why Buffalo, NY’s Sleepaway decided not to join the city’s respectable hardcore scene (which once included Snapcase) was so that they would never be labelled a screamo band. In fact, despite comparisons to Jimmy Eat World, they might even have successfully escaped the inevitable emo label too by harkening back to the glory days of "alternative music.” While Sleepaway aren’t subscribing completely to a ’90s revival, there is no disguising the fact that there is more than a passing similarity to the Gin Blossoms. In fact, most of the songs zip by at the pace of "Hey Jealousy,” and are full of shiny pop goodness. It’s refreshing to hear this degree of polish on a debut by such a young band. The one problem is that the band need some range. While there’s no denying that they’ve really got that one particular song down, the whole album is too one-dimensional to be anything but a fun record to delve into from time to time. But considering the age of the band, it really isn’t too much to hope that Sleepaway will evolve into a band as good as this CD suggests they might become.