The Evens "The Evens"

I always loved that naked DC indie-pop style that Unrest created many moons ago. You know, just a guy and his guitar and a girl helping him out here and there, nothing too fancy or weird-just nice, pretty songs. Imagine the surprise to be had when you listen to The Evens for the first time. Yeah, it’s Ian McKaye (you know, from Fugazi), but this ain’t punk rock at all. If anything, it’s indie-pop, and it’s quite different-in all the right ways. It’s just him and Amy Farina (from The Warmers), and there’s nothing loud about this record at all. Sure, there’s the occasional sing-along, such as “All These Governors” and the great closer “You Won’t Feel a Thing,” but there’s nothing loud or in-your-face about it. No, the jangle here is almost Teenbeat in nature, and that’s a good thing. Knowing McKaye’s penchant for experimenting, this wasn’t exactly the direction I thought he’d go in this post-Fugazi world, but I’m really not complaining. I love the boy/girl vocal interchange that runs throughout the record, too. And yeah, there’s a political bent to the music, but you won’t notice it at all. Actually, come to think of it, it’s kind of reminiscent of John Frusciante’s recent fascination with stripped-down music. Ah well, a good record’s a good record, and this is a GREAT record.

--Joseph Kyle

Artist Website: http://www.dischord.com/bands/evens.shtml
Label Website: http://www.dischord.com