I haven’t heard a record like this in years. What a breath of fresh air. The Army of Freshman is truly an original band, culminating from a range of musical styles. I would have to pigeonhole them as a power-pop band, but they are a power-pop band that rocks hard. The keyboards soar high on this record; there are 2 keyboardists in this band after all. Lead singer, Chris Jay, has an energetic vocal style combined with wit and Beach Boys style harmonies. None of this makes the band stereotypically “pop” however. The guitars on this record are punchy and in the vain of more punk music than pop. This band is not following any trends, and God bless them for it. They’ve also shared the stage with a variety of bands from similar bands like Ozma, to bands like The Specials and Pulley. Truly a diverse group of young men.
On to the record however. It’s 15 tracks of pure fun that just doesn’t quit. I seriously can’t wait to see what this band can do live. From what I’ve read, they put in 110% and even injure themselves putting on a great show. They also book their own shows, answer all fan mail, run their own website and distribute their own records, of which they have sold 7,000 copies. Hearing all this, I cannot help but be blown away by these guys already. There are some hard workers left in rock and roll after all. This record conveys all of these qualities in this band. The first track is the raucous “Spring Break”, in which Jay sings, “Well she went Baywatch for a sand jock with a nice stand and a fake tan. Well if I was Braveheart then I’d get ill dude, but I’m not hard, I’m not Ice Cube”. This band is not corny though, don’t get that impression, they just have a quick sense of humor.
The next song that hits me is “Bulletproof in Baggy Jeans”. The chorus of the song is similar to The Rentals, an equally keyboard based band that still rocks. I’m not actually sure what model of keyboards are used, but they really sound like Moog synthesizers, which were made popular again recently by The Rentals, these combined with traditional sounding keyboards and punchy guitars and drums really just make this music infectious. “Mannequin” is a beautiful song vocally, Jay really seems to love what he does, and it’s evident in his songs. “Save the World” brings some of the teen angst you would expect from a band called The Army of Freshman. The hook in this track goes, “I don’t want to save the world, I don’t even want the girl”. I admit to having a laugh upon hearing that one. Track 11, “Summer’s Over” is one of the more funky tracks, with Jay spitting his vocals and the band following suit.
The closing track is “Here in the Fan”, which starts out with a classic piano line which continues throughout. It does sound like a more serious track than the rest of the record, but nonetheless catchy.
This record is must, this band sounds like the bastard child of The Beach Boys and The Ramones, in a good way. Jay Ferguson of “Thunder Island” fame produced the record, which did not hurt. The fact that Chris Jay also responded to my email about writing about his band directly and so enthusiastically means enough to me to solidify my thumbs up. Catch them at the Webster with River City High on May 4th.
