Family Average: 4.9/7

The Nameless Citizens are Out of the Mold and into our reviews this week. The family sat down to assess the EP of this pop-rock band. While the band takes influence from bands like The Killers and ColdPlay, the family seemed collectively reminded of a different band. Which one, you may be wondering?

Listen along to their EP on Spotify and read on to find out:

The Nameless Citizens seem like they think a whole lot about most things. From the name of the band, the album art, the lyrics, all the way down to the names of the songs themselves. This is neat for me. I like looking at something and realizing “hey someone really poured over this decision”. Luckily for me this trend carried throughout the music of the entire EP.

Each song boasted a healthy amount of dimension. I guess you could call it layering, but not to the point where you have no idea what's going on. Instead there are fun, little elements introduced and then quickly removed. A great example of this comes from the tune “Insistent Echo”. Towards the end of the track (around the 4:15 mark) there is this down right gritty guitar that just cuts through all the sound. Holy cow! And then just like that, it's gone. Felt like the last track was kind of a strange direction to go to end the EP. Not bad, just felt like it didn’t really jell with the rest of the tracks.

Would love to see this fellah explore a whole album, really find his sound.

5/7

 Overall, it is a good album. I want to say great, but there is something missing. Their sound has an R.E.M. or even Red Hot Chili Peppers kind of quality to it. The composition was good; I found it to be generally upbeat and carefree throughout. At the same time, there was nothing that really grabbed me about it, nothing that would make me want to come back to it. Also, let's just say the vocals could be a bit stronger. My main complaint honestly would be the vocals, and that the guitar seems to be spread pretty thin.

I think it’s a good start for these guys in terms of an EP. They all have incredible musical talent, and once they find a way to differentiate themselves, that will shine through even more.

3/7

The EP starts out with ‘New Solution’, and to be honest, I actually really like this song. Let me be clear, it’s sorely lacking in originality and the lyrics are a bit cringeworthy, but all in all, my head was bopping. I really love the instrumentation throughout. It had a Red Hot Chili Pepper vibe to it, which I’d be surprised if that wasn’t purposeful, and I really enjoyed the arrangement.

By the time I finished the song, I had really high hopes for the album as a whole. You know that feeling when you downloaded a movie off of BitTorrent one too many times? You know the risks but you start playing the movie, and you’re like, “Okay, yeah this is fine, I’m excited.” But then the computer basically implodes with a virus and you’re like “Oh yep, that makes more sense.” That was how I felt with the rest of this EP, honestly. My biggest problem is that even though the instrumentation is somewhat strong throughout (I think the artist has a real knack for melody), very few of the lyrics really resonate with me. They seem almost distant and performative. There wasn’t as much personality in the lyrics as I would have liked. I would also suggest the artist experiment with more musicality in his vocal performance. Dynamics, different rhythms/flows, maybe. His vocal performance was kinda boring by the 3rd song, and I felt like I already experienced the full scope of what he vocally had to offer.

The Nameless Citizens has a ways to go, but has a solid foundation to build on.

3.5/7

Wow, okay. Its like everyone in the RHCP died and then their distant relatives tried to remake their music. At least Anthony Kiedis had talent before he got singing lessons. As if it's bad enough the singer is trying to be Anthony Kiedis, I think it is only worse that I can envision the sunburst strat that the guitar player must be using.

But enough knocking on how they like to take “inspiration” from other artists, this EP lacks purpose, substance, or even a common theme.

2/7

As everyone else has said, this felt like it took a lot of inspiration from The Red Hot Chili Peppers. Nevertheless, the songs themselves are pretty strong composition wise. The instrumentation and melodies are really well done and quite lovely, but as soon as the singer comes in and starts pouring his heart out, I got turned off. I was most into the opening track “New Solution (Find My Way)”, which had a great mix of sliding guitar and tight drums. The rest of the album just felt really subdued and the lyrics read like a desperate attempt at introspection. The EP is a short showcase of the artist’s various talents. It’s palatable, but not always pleasant. I honestly think I would have liked this album if you wiped the lyrics and vocals. I’d be very interested to hear more from him, and to see him develop more of a style of his own.

3.5/7

The song arrangements and instrumentals on most tracks were very enjoyable.  I have to admit, I was not crazy about the vocals on the first track. I don't know if a different key would work or perhaps making his voice fuller with background singers.  

"A little Affirmation" was a lovely acoustic track with almost a Jack Johnson quality. Seems to me they are very good musicians. There is a lot of attention paid to how a song is presented and they work hard to cover all their bases.

Only 4 songs here and I look forward to hearing more.  

4.5/7