Review: Pershing

Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltin's sophomore album is just what you'd expect, and we couldn't be happier.

When I first heard Broom, I remember scoffing and complaining that every song sounded like an Elliott Smith or Beatles rip-off. Two weeks later, I owned the album. A week after that, I knew every word. Now, I can’t remember the last long car ride I’ve made without giving it at least one spin. Regardless of the vocal similarities to other famous acts, the boys in SSLYBY have a way with pop songs that grossly supersedes its genre.

Pershing is certainly no exception but an exaggeration of that fact. It’s a combination of newly written material and songs the band’s been playing for years. Maybe it’s my own biases and memories of hearing these songs in a hot, smoky bar holding my drink above the crowd to keep from spilling, but this album is just fun, plain and simple. With song titles usually plucked straight from the lyrics and near-constant harmonized or doubled vocals, it invites the listener to start singing along on the first listen.

While a lot of Broom’s charm was in the warm, under-produced, attic studio feeling, the band didn’t try to recreate that on Pershing. Even though this album was also recorded in a home studio (Will’s aunt’s home, to be specific), the boys have picked up some recording tricks over the years. Pershing sounds as polished as any Polyvinyl release I’ve heard—even more so at times. It’s refreshing that the songs are just as catchy and affecting without the awkwardly placed mics and overly compressed drums of Broom.

Lyrically and stylistically, it’s similar to the direction the band has always gone. It’s bright, honest and never feels overanalyzed. The guitar tones are still clean with a little crunch, the “oos” and “whoa-oo-whoas” are still in full force, and the girls are still heartbreakers. SSLYBY’s strongest moments are in its simplicity and charm. Don’t expect a new direction from Pershing. Just expect the perfecting of a craft.

Choice Spins: “You Could Write a Book”, “Modern Mystery”, “Heers”