The Ice of Boston

Interscope

The opener and title track of this 4-song EP makes it worth the price of admission, if only to be used on your future mix tapes. Singer/guitarist Travis Morrison plays the ultimate loser, lost at home in a shabby Boston apartment on New Year's Eve, watching the world celebrate from his window, mulling over an old girlfriend and talking to his mother on the phone after pouring a bottle of champaign over his head. Slacker ennui? You bet, all gracelessly backed by a righteous, flicking electric guitar that explodes with every chorus. Produced by Jawbox's J. Robbins and Smart Went Crazy's Chad Clark, the CD captures all the fun angst that you'd expect from a bunch of guys who list Slint, Shudder to Think, and Kool and the Gang among their influences. The other three tracks are pretty good, though less light-hearted. The title, "The First Anniversary of Your Last Phone Call," sums up the track's general feel. While "Just Like You," falls under the mathrock art-core noiseplosion school of rock, a la Built to Spill/Modest Mouse. The closer, "Spider in the Snow," cleans all that up, taking a turn at Pavement-style indie rock. Inspirational verse: "The only thing worse than bad memories/Is no memories at all." EP's tend to preclude full-length releases. Let's hope there's more to come.

-- Tim McMahan

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Copyright © 1999 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Rating: Yes