Bluebottle

The E.G.O. Has Landed (2001)

Scott Heisel

It's almost 2002. The milennium has come and gone. Music has progressed in ways that, just 10 years ago, no one would have ever thought possible. Countless genres and subgenres are born all the time. Some of the most innovative sounds in the history of mankind are being created as we speak. And yet, somehow, ska-punk music still exists. Many people scratch their heads every day wondering how such a simplistic genre is able to scrape by? In this dog-eat-rudeboy world, how can a band survive? One turns to Darwin for the answer: evolution. It's okay to keep playing ska-punk, but to keep afloat, a band must try to work something else into the mix to keep things lively. This has been the case with bands like the Blue Meanies, incorporating just about every possible style of music into their hodgepodge of noise which is lazily labeled as "ska-punk." Bluebottle also suceeds in the same area, to a lesser extent.

Bluebottle is a 7-piece band from Arlington Heights, IL. If I were a lazy critic, I would say they play ska-punk music and end the review shortly thereafter. But there's more to this band than meets the eye. Tracks like "Reassurance," "Office Help," and "Pain" take the basic ska-punk formula and throw in bits of jazzy horns, hardcore breakdowns, and "emo" guitar riffs [a more apt description would be a guitar sound akin to the majority of Vagrant Records' current roster]. "Pain" especially has a wicked breakdown that could rival most moshcore bands out there now.

The band also employs 5/7ths of the band as lyricists on the album, which spices things up considerably. Steve and drummer Greg tend to throw a political stance into their songs, whereas Victor and Tumble [both on guitar] write from more of a "jilted lover" standpoint, as evidenced on tracks like "Reassurance" and "Gone Decked Out 2 Lonely @ 25." The band's secret weapon seems to be their ultra-tight horn section [2 trombones and a trumpet]. They are present in every song, but not too much, and they really drive each song ahead instead of weighing it down. They remind me a lot of the Mad Caddies' horn section in overall originality and crispness of their sound, especially in "Pain."

This isn't saying the band is perfect, however. There are some duds on this album, most prominently being the opening track "Everything's Fine." This song just grates on my nerves after each listen. The band tries to pull off a strange tempo causing every member to sound disjointed from the rest of the band, and the vocals seem to be out of main singer/bassist Steve's normal range. "Choose Your Own Adventure" has potential to fail from this same vocal standpoint even though the song is a real melodic rocker, but Steve really nails his high notes. This kid has a good set of pipes in him, he just needs to know how much they'll allow. "There's Something Attractive About A Vomiting Man" sounds exactly like what you'd think it is - a 45 second, throwaway song. It's not all that funny, nor is it necessary. Maybe if you're NOFX you throw in something like this, but otherwise, don't waste space on the album.

"The E.G.O. Has Landed" is by no means the best album of 2001, but for what it is, it's not that bad. Sure, the band has room for improvement, but what band doesn't? I think that if they keep with it and hammer out some of the rough spots in their music, people will be bound to take notice. The stale labeling of "ska-punk" will not keep this band down. Survival of the fittest band starts now, and look for this group to evolve even more in the coming years.

MP3s
Memories Revisited
Everything's Fine

Real Audio
Everything's Fine
Pain
Choose Your Own Adventure

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