EVEN THE ODD
Popular Among Van Owners (Wrong Records)
Reviewed by Shaun Dale

---

Victims of the chew 'em up and spit 'em out major label wars while still teenagers, Ben Hornbeck and Ryan Darnell bailed out, went back to their "middle of nowhere" hometown in Michigan, recruited a new bassist (Joey V) and started over.

I'm so glad they did.

They describe Popular Among Van Owners as a "throwback" album, referring largely to their decision to mike their Marshalls and record direct to analog tape in the classic 'live in the studio' style, based on Joey's conviction that "Pro Tools is the worst thing that ever happened to the recording industry..." That's only part of the story, though. They're also a throwback to a time when genre was less a consideration than just the song, when you could freely toss in a bit of thrash, some emotional vulnerability, too much fun or whatever struck your fancy without worrying about whether it moved your album from one category to another.

It's a throwback to the days when a great rock band was free to go ahead and just make a great rock album, whatever that meant and whatever that took.

Even The Odd is a great rock band. They've made a great rock album. You're in store for a great time.

Track List:

Forgive Me * Message To You * Hey Hey * It's Over * Something * My Own * Broken Gun * Never Gone * Piece By Piece * Mothra * Burn It Down

© 2004 - Shaun Dale