Primus Antipop is Antiquality

By Jim Duncan

Genre is a tricky thing in music. Everyone's instinct is to pigeonhole, categorize, separate and rate based on a set of vague group criteria that, more often than not, no one can really agree on. (Was Led Zeppelin a "rock" band or the first "heavy metal" band? Go fight that one out.)

Probably the latest and vaguest genre argument centers on the term "emo" Ñ sometimes it's Fugazi, sometimes it's the Promise Ring, sometimes it's Knapsack, but none of these bands sound anything alike. Is Fugazi emo or post-punk? Is the Promise Ring emo or pop? Is Knapsack emo or punk?

The Get-Up Kids have this problem too. Are they emo, punk, or pop hyphenated with something else? Who knows? Regardless, they're a great band, and they have a new record out on Vagrant Records called Something to Write Home About.

Their first record, 1997's Four-Minute Mile on Doghouse Records, was an explosive debut, earning them much critical acclaim and a solid fan base. Over the past two years, they've played most of the United States and Europe (with over 200 shows in one year) with bands like Mineral, Jejune, No Knife, Jimmy Eat World, Braid, Rocket from the Crypt and MXPX. Everyone's been waiting to see what they'd do next Ñ which, as it turns out, is a great follow-up album.

The major instrumentation difference on Something to Write Home About is the addition of full-time keyboard player James Dewees to fill out the melody section. What's still there are the complex, dynamic guitar harmonies, looping bass lines, and offbeat percussion that made the band great in the first place.

There's a little less rock to this album than the Four Minute Mile-songs. The slow, acoustic "Out of Reach" and "I'll Catch You" with their melancholy piano work add a compelling depth and maturity to the collection as a whole.

Something to Write Home About is still a rock record Ñ make no mistake. Whether it's emo, punk or pop, it'll burn you like nobody's business. Don't miss out.

Jim Duncan reminds you of the KSCU fundraiser, Nov. 6 through 14. We've got cool stuff.