Pocket Dwellers

Hot damn, I love this band. While they’ve consistently impressed with their live show, they had yet to deliver a comparably magical record. That is, until PD-Atrics came into the world. Whatever it was that was holding them down in that "great live, so-so in the studio” rut, they’ve not only overcome it, they’ve kicked its ass straight out of sight. PD-Atrics is a beautiful record — written, performed and produced entirely by seven Pocket Dweller brothers at the very top of their game. The album features their strongest songwriting, finest compositions and most matured approaches to music yet, managing to capture a great deal of diversity in sound and subject matter while still flowing beautifully from beginning to end. In "Circus” and "Critical Acclaim” they berate the grand hype machine of the music industry, moving on to critique image-obsessed victims of plastic surgery ("Are those your lips?”) on "Photogenic.” Yes, there is a song about weed (the slow, seductive "Mary Jane”), and yes, there is a raucous party-starter (the thunderous "Play This Music”). They slow things down for "Marvelous” and "Poor Little Girl,” a sharp, somewhat painful account of racism. You may think you know the Pocket Dwellers, but if PD-Atrics is any indication, we’re really only starting to see what these seven are capable of.