Reviews

Orange hasn't heard Milo Goes To College. Apparently, nobody involved in writing, rehearsing, or recording has either. Otherwise, they clearly would've immediately realized that the song "Republicans" sounds exactly like "Suburban Home" by the Descendents. Since everyone in this band has to be under twenty, I guess that's forgivable, but somebody along the lines should've made the connection. I don't think very many bands rip off other artists on purpose, so I don't think Orange did, but it doesn't bode well for originality. A slight variation in the guitar riff would've saved that song. It's a shame too, because it significantly soured me on Orange and once I'm soured, the flaws rise to the surface pretty quickly.

Lead singer and bassist Joe Dexter is apparently the love child of bat shit crazy Brits Johnny Rotten and Pete Doherty. His vocals are basically Doherty's but with Rotten's added snarl. The band follows in the Pistols plus Libertines sound. The first five tracks or so are actually pretty great. "Not Coming Home" displays the band's pissed off but positive perspective and skill as musicians. They do craft their songs well, featuring a few spots for guitar solos and catchy choruses, cutting them off before the chorus goes on second repeat. "What I'm Looking For" has that bold message and sound punk anthems often embody.

The album stumbles about midway and then shows up dead at track eight with the Descendents rip. Slowing down their sound isn't a great idea because an album like this has to keep its velocity up. A band that sticks to energy and fun doesn't need to be taken too seriously, but as soon as you drop the speed and volume, the lyrics become a lot more important and these hit the cliché meter pretty high. For example, the guitars slip away as Dexter begins singing in "The Only Ones." So "life is not easy, life is not hard" become the focal point. It's a little disarming for the album to slow down to showcase...that. That song recovers, but then "Flying Without Fear" starts slow, speeds up for choruses, then slows again, featuring advice-column lyrics like "Life is too short to keep living in fear." Angels will spread their wings if you fly without fear or something. The chorus of "Stars" gets a little cheesy, with its optimistic call for stars to shine their light. Then there's a cover of "Karma Chameleon" and then some spoken word metal thing I don't get.

They've matured in a good direction, but they're still really young and it shows. Some bands achieve too much too young and it doesn't give them room to grow. If these guys had been discovered at 22, with a few years under their belt, they might have had some more time to discover their own sound and work out some stronger lyrics. Unfortunately, they still sound like Libertines for young teens to me.