5 out of 5

Label: Sounds Familyre

Producer: Daniel Smith

Maybe Soul-Junk is like the best possible group for sticking to an EP format.  Although through it’s various shifts in style the group has issued a few very listenable or even great albums, I would still say there’s a bit of a trek for getting through them, just because a big portion of each feels like an experiment on the band’s behalf (which may or may not mostly be Glen Galaxy…).  Perhaps not an experiment in sound, put in emotion, just putting something raw to tape or digital and seeing how it feels once released, then shaping it to fit a sloppy guitar rhythm or cut and paste beat.  1942 is rough around the edges still – Galaxy tries to sing and it’s way off and screechy, and selected moments threaten to topple into too Jesusy or too folky, or too cutesy, even, but that’s why keeping it short works.  1942 seems to bridge the gap between styles a little.  There’s something very polished about the recording, even with the interesting tinkling of mixed instruments going on in the background – it’s very clear and direct, and each song feels complete.  I’ll credit the Daniel Smith influence to this, who’s recording tends to crunch the sound of louder bands (like mewithoutYou) but in this more acoustic formula works wonders at separating the sounds.

Now I don’t want to mislead – the 5 out of 5 isn’t a promise that this will blow your socks off, but after x amount of SJ albums of wavering success, 1942 was just sort of a fun breath of fresh air that I actually looked forward to re-listening to several times in a row instead of reminding myself to put it back in rotation.