Hot Rod Circuit - The Underground Is A Dying Breed

LABEL:

Immortal

GENRE:

Emo/Rock

RELEASE:

March 20, 2007

LENGTH:

36 min 49 sec

RATING:

For much of the past decade, my impression of Vagrant Records was that every one of its bands was stuck living under that shadow of The Get Up Kids, easily the best thing that ever happened to that particular label. Throughout that time, if there was anyone fighting for acceptance by fans of that band, it was Hot Rod Circuit. Consistently one step behind the 'Kids,' they played a similar style of heart-felt, emotional music with a slight southern twang, but could never quite match the quality of their peers. Today, Hot Rod Circuit is the only one of the two still standing, so they forge ahead, attempted to create their own identity in the music scene.

With The Underground Is A Dying Breed, the band has left Vagrant Records and seem to be seeking bigger and better things. It's hard to tell at this point if they have found it, as not much had changed. The lyrical content on this album is nearly identical to their previous efforts, primarily consisting of songs about love and emotional struggle. While there is nothing wrong with that, it seems that HRC have literally run out of things to sing about and are just reliving their past with some more contrived lyrics. I could almost look past it if it weren't for the glaring weak spot that this band has had since I can remember: the inability to write any variation into their verses instead of simply repeating them. I've put up with the fact that this band can only write one verse per song for too long and I'm not letting it fool me anymore. If your songs can all be skipped halfway through without missing anything, then you are ripping off your listeners.

I was really hoping that this band could finally turn the corner and break out of their old habits, especially since I really enjoy the music on this album and the vocals are good. The lyrics aren't even really that bad, but the repetitions just drive me nuts. Unfortunately, The Underground Is A Dying Breed feels like just more of the same and while some bands can pull that trick off, Hot Rod Circuit cannot. "Stateside," the opening track and a catchy one at that, starts its chorus with the line, "as typical as it may seem," and that pretty much sets the pace. That's not to say that this album is necessarily bad, but I can't in good conscience call it great. While I admire HRC's dedication to their sound and ability to improve over their previous release, to me, this is the kind of album that is only enjoyable if you ignore most of the lyrics. Every time I listen to it I try a little harder, and with any luck, I will be able to stop cringing when I do.