Count Your Lucky Stars signings Bottom Bracket’s new album ‘I’m So Afraid of Where’ finds the Chicago band looking over the ups and downs of a relationship, with the press release stating the vocals are shot out ‘at a pace that would put the Gilmore Girls to shame’.
‘A Condemnation’ opens the album with Into It. Over It.-style vibes. Tim Recio asks where do we all end up after this while Rob Diaz’s drums crash around him as he pours his heart out even more: ‘What do you have to gain from hiding things?’ It almost feels like there are handclaps in the more restrained moments. ‘Great Lake Jumper’ follows with lots of twiddly guitar hooks and group chants that feel vital and energetic. ‘Spin Cycle’ sounds somewhat akin to a video game soundtrack mixed with Michael Cera Palin and a touch of self-deprecation: ‘If your life’s a T-shirt, I must be the stain’.
‘Camouflage’ opens with the line ‘I’ve been holding out on telling you about my doubts’ and further thoughts are delivered against a relentless backdrop while ‘Swivel’ is 2 minutes and 30 seconds of effects-laden pondering: ‘How do I do better?’ ‘Unsavory’ has moments of Minus the Bear-style stop-start riffs and ‘Cellar Door’ could make you cry with its admission of ‘I spent so many nights alone’. The album finishes with ‘A Confrontation’, a potent piece of emo power pop that lives up to its title.
There’s no need to be afraid, Bottom Bracket will take you to the top.