The Arrivals

Northern Hospitality (2002)

Scott Heisel

I've had this 4 song teaser EP in my stereo repeating all morning long with my brother sitting next to me, and my brother's only contribution to my opinion is that "this sounds like Screeching Weasel."

I don't hear that at all. Mainly because I don't like Screeching Weasel, but moreso because I think the Arrivals have a more diverse style of pop-punk that they tackle with ease on this EP.

Each of these four tracks covers a different feel of pop-punk, but it's all uniquely Arrivals. "Analee" is a nice Lookout!-era Green Day-ish romp that's over before you know it. "Dirty Inches" is the second of two tracks that will be on the Arrivals' upcoming sophomore full-length "Exsenator Orange," [with the first being "Analee"] and the song is a bit heavier than it's predecessor, speeding up the tempo and dropping the guitar solo.

So since those two tracks will be on the new LP, are the other two songs just throwaways for the EP, or are they on par? Well, "Northern Hospitality" is incredibly fast-paced, and reminds me a ton of Dillinger Four. I can't stop drumming along to this song on my keyboard. Closing out the *incredibly* short EP [it barely cracks eight minutes] is the acoustic jam "Hearts In The Right Places." This sounds like a perfect drinking song about a broken heart, and I could see it becoming legendary if only more people knew about it.

So, all in all, it's 8 minutes and 4 songs worth of a good time. The CD ends before you even realize it, so I am just keeping it on repeat for the rest of the day.

Screeching Weasel, my ass.

MP3
Analee