01. Skin Graph (6:02)
02. Make Believe (5:13)
03. Bloody Mary (Nerve Endings) (5:10)
04. Busy Bees (5:39)
05. Here We Are (Chancer) (4:47)
06. Mean Spirits (4:49)
07. Simmer (6:51)
08. The Pit (4:41)
09. Dots And Dashes (Enough Already) (5:08)
10. Gun-Shy Sunshine (5:37)
11. Out Of Breath (5:02)
When it comes to the task of talking about the newest effort from a musician or band, "like" becomes the worst word in a reviewer's vocabulary. Love it or hate it, it’s easy to write about it. It’s easy to tell someone why you love it or hate it. But to simply “like” the album? Well, that is when the words needed to persuade readers to buy or not to buy come the hardest.



Los Angeles-based Silversun Pickups’ third studio release, Neck of the Woods, hits stores May 8, 2012 and has been streaming through MTV’s Buzzworthy site for a little more than a week prior to the release. A teaser video for the album’s first single, “Bloody Mary (Nerve Endings),” hit YouTube March 25, 2012 and as of press time has received nearly 300,000 hits.



The tracks on Neck of the Woods are terrific in that you get what you are expecting from the band, after hearing their first two releases. They are lackluster in that if you put all of the band’s tracks together on your iPod and hit shuffle, you may have a hard time identifying which songs came off of which albums. That is not to say that every album from every band MUST have a unique sound that sets it apart from the rest of the catalog. But in a time when critics are quick to jump on a band for changing their signature sound from one album to the next, I don’t believe that Silversun Pickups have changed enough from Swoon to Neck of the Woods.



The standout track on the album is “Mean Spirits,” shifting gears from the band’s usual brand of ethereal rock and taking on a heavier, more aggressive rock sound, which they continue later in the album with “The Pit.” While “Mean Spirits” drives at a guitar riff that would be comfortable on any hard rock radio station around the country, “The Pit” mixes inspiration from the early 1980s new wave sounds (my instinct is to say specifically from New Order) with their trademark sound. If I were to pick a favorite track on Neck of the Woods, “Mean Spirits” would probably be it, but I am not sure at this point that I am ready to make that commitment.


All songs written and composed by Silversun Pickups. 

Brian Aubert, Main Vocals / Guitar
Nikki Monninger, Bass Guitar / Backing Vocals
Joe Lester, Keyboards / Sound Manipulation
Christopher Guanlao, Drums

cd ripped by EAC

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