I like to fool myself into thinking that i actually don’t have much a natural inclination towards raving fanboy-isms and try to avoid these kind of things here as good as i can, but this is one of the rare occasions where i’m just plainly unable to contain my euphoria for such a singular group that has sent such insane waves through the garage punk scene and basically set new benchmarks for catchy pop tunes with a deep and unique sense of melancholy, and all that that after the group’s Jeff Burke and Mark Ryan had previously already established themselves as invaluable garage punk luminaries by fronting another essential genre mainstay, The Marked Men. Right from the start, Time Won’t Bring Me Down strikes me as yet another instant classic of the ultra-classic Radioactivity school and Watch Me Bleed radiates that same familiar and unique feel before This One Time slows things down for the first time and sets the tone for much of what’s to come on this record, which more than ever leans into the group’s calmer, moodier side and an almost classic power pop vibe that in parts should feel familiar already to those acquainted with the Jeff Burke-penned tunes on the two Lost Balloons LPs while there’s still enough high energy rockin’ out goin’ on to also please all fans of previous Radioactivity records. Now, for most lesser groups, going slow for much of an album is usually a bad idea and a recipe for boredom and it truly takes some superior capabilities in songwriting and arrangement to pull that shit off successfully. Well, cue Jeff Burke, one of the the most accomplished songwriters of the punk scene alive today, whose unreal craftsmanship never falters even once on what might actually be the greatest Radioactivity record to date. But honestly, in a discography as immaculate as theirs, it’s actually kinda futile trying to pick a favorite.
