Lit’s new album couples party rock with thoughtful, reflective songs
Lit, the band from southern California known for its party anthems and hit rock songs, has taken a different approach on its latest album The View from the Bottom. Rather than just focusing on rock rallying cries, the 12-song release features several numbers with much deeper lyrics and a reflective bent toward the band’s difficult years. The album is one of the highlights of the year and a welcome return to the forefront for a band that deserves to be heard.
“C’Mon,” the album’s first track, sounds and feels like the old Lit. The eager vocals by A. Jay Popoff scream through the song, grabbing the listener by the ear and demanding they listen. There’s a great immediacy about the song, describing the preciousness of enjoying the present. It’s anthemic and somehow nostalgic at the same time — a perfect album-starter.
“You Tonight” and “Same S***, Different Drink” continues the album along the same thread. “SS, DD,” in particular, is a funny song that paints an accurate picture of “who cares” society.
If the tracks continued down this line, The View from the Bottom would be a solid, but safe album from the southern California rockers. Thankfully, they throw in many curveballs. The one-two punch of “Miss You Gone” and “The Broken” is rhythmic perfection. The two songs are evidence of the band’s maturity and ability to comment on the difficulties that came before. Lit’s hit songs, “My Own Worst Enemy” and “Miserable,” shot up the charts several years ago, and these two new songs should (and hopefully will) have similar success.
I can already picture them being played on the radio over and over again.
“Miss You Gone” is the album’s strongest song, coupling bracing guitar work with interesting lyrics. “The Broken,” which tells a story of a person being unable to break the broken, is downright beautiful. It may hide itself behind the guitar riffs and beats, but the song is wonderfully subtle and telling.
The second half of the album, including “Partner in Crime,” “The Wall” and “Right This Time,” doesn’t quite match the mastery of the first half. But after listening to all 12 songs, it becomes clear that this quintet of musicians, including A. Jay Popoff, Jeremy Popoff, Kevin Baldes, Nathan Walker and Ryan Gillmore, proves they’re much more than a party rock band from the 1990s. They offer music that contains the best of both worlds: rhythmically raw and lyrically poignant.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
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The View from the Bottom
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Lit
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Featuring A. Jay Popoff, Jeremy Popoff, Kevin Baldes, Nathan Walker and Ryan Gillmore
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12 songs
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Rating:
