Tomorrow In Review

Imperfect: Beautiful (2004)

Scott

Every time I logged into MySpace (keep your comments to yourself!) for a month straight I had this band's profile and pictures shoved in my face. I figured they're probably just some All-American Rejects wannabe/cover band that was geared towards fifteen year old girls.

Thanks to my luck the debut record from the two young gentlemen landed near the top of my review material pile. My predictions were half right; this is definitely music for the youngsters in high school. The other half went awry because instead of playing sugar coated pop-melodies these guys pawn off as a two man Dashboard Confessional. Even the vocals pouring from the two youthful voices are rather uncanny to the wails of Chris Carabba at times. Further comparing Tomorrow in Review to the current pop star "So Long Would Suffice" borrows quite a chunk musically from "Again I Go Unnoticed," I'd go as far to accuse plagiarism on their behalf. On the album's title track "Imperfect: Beautiful" the secondary vocalist sings in a similar fashion to that of Tom Delonge; drawing resemblance to his style in Box Car Racer.

The thirty five excruciating minutes of Imperfect: Beautiful play like one of those terrible tribute records. For a stand alone album this embezzles too much from other artists and clichés. Sadly, it will probably succeed, riding on the heals of a single so simple that it's guaranteed to fill some teenie bopper's stereo. "Hello are you there / are you listening / don't waste / these un-tired ears / I'm out of touch / my oxygen is fleeting / I miss you so." are the lyrics that will surely grasp consideration, while a graceful acoustic guitar and soft drums fill out the song.

Tomorrow In Review is the ideal example to prove that the emo genre has been beaten dead. There's not a speck of originality in any of the eleven tracks and if I was Mr. Carabba I'd go have a word with these boys about pilfering.