Mayday Malone

A Reason To Quit (2003)

Brian Shultz

I don't know why, but I actually expected something good from this band. Maybe it was the modest shot of a snow-covered city street that graced the cover of their album A Reason to Quit. Maybe it was their name's throwback to "Cheers" hero Ted Danson. Maybe I was getting desperate for something in my review pile not to SUCK SO FUCKING MUCH.

Mayday Malone instead bored me with their brand of blah-at-best pop-punk. It's not the whiny kind, but that sure as hell doesn't make it good. The vocalist sounds like a cheap, watered down imitation of Audio Karate's lead singer without the gruffness, and, granted their musicianship is tight, but used to do absolutely nothing new. The best track is the acoustic throwaway with violins that still isn't good enough for me to bother finding the song title.

The mix is weird, too. The bass is turned up WAY louder than most other CDs I've heard, which is probably because he'll occasionally pull off some half-interesting lines, but it still jumps out at you like a stray cat with its claws exposed.

The self-deprecating title rings true.