Name: Used To Yesterday
Brand: Slumberland Records
SKU: 184405572
Price: 14.3 SGD
Availability: InStock

Performer Notes

Personnel: Chris Rosi (vocals, guitar); Jenny Moffett (vocals); Corey Cunningham (guitar, organ); Brice Bradley (guitar, drums).
Audio Mixer: Kyle Mullarky.
On Used to Yesterday, their second album overall and first for Slumberland, Smokescreens take a step away from the noisy clatter of their debut and craft a sound that more artfully mixes the scrappy jangle of early Flying Nun bands, the sonic rush of the mid-'80s indie pop scene in the U.K., and the lyrically introspective Amerindie sound of the early '90s into a slick hybrid. When some punk energy carried over from guitarist Corey Cunningham's other band, Terry Malts and Chris Rosi's slacker-next-door vocals are added to short, snappy songs that latch onto the brain like Velcro, the mixture makes for a darn good album. It takes a while to really get going, as the melodies of the first couple songs fall just a little on the wrong side of simplicity, but once bassist Jenny Moffett steps up to the mike on the almost giddy "Jolly Jane," the ship rights and the rest is a noisy power pop delight. "Buddy" is a fine dreamgaze ballad that slows the tempo and lets a little melancholy seep into the proceedings, "Waiting for Summer" is a 12-string jangler with a hooky melody and a classic subject, "Fool Me" mines country-pop territory with some sad slide guitar, and "Falling Down" ends the album on a jaggedly epic note with some majestic guitars and a widescreen melody sung with gusto by Rosi and Moffett. It's an impressive back half of an album that shows the diversity and range Smokescreens manage to deliver within a small set of guitar pop parameters. They also turn in a nice cover of "Steel Blue Skies" by the obscure '80s New Zealand band Wasp Factory, in the process giving listeners a new band to seek out after they're done spinning Used to Yesterday. Which is something someone looking for a fresh take on the early Flying Nun-meets-C-86 sound should seriously consider doing repeatedly. ~ Tim Sendra

Album: Used To Yesterday
#	Song Title		Time
1)	Someone New	More Info...
2)	Used to Yesterday	More Info...
3)	The Lost Song	More Info...
4)	Jolly Jane	More Info...
5)	Buddy	More Info...
6)	Waiting for Summer	More Info...
7)	Steel Blue Skies	More Info...
8)	Fool Me	More Info...
9)	It's Not Right	More Info...
10)	Falling Down	More Info...

Album: Used To Yesterday
#	Song Title		Time
1)	Someone New	More Info...
2)	Used to Yesterday	More Info...
3)	The Lost Song	More Info...
4)	Jolly Jane	More Info...
5)	Buddy	More Info...
6)	Waiting for Summer	More Info...
7)	Steel Blue Skies	More Info...
8)	Fool Me	More Info...
9)	It's Not Right	More Info...
10)	Falling Down	More Info...