Album Review: The Get Up Kids - 'Simple Science'

When a band breaks up and reforms again to record new material, fans often meet this news with two different opinions. They are either over the moon about this news and want to hear the new songs more than anything in the world, or they are skeptical about the idea and are nervous as to whether the band can match the standard they have set in their past.

When I saw The Get Up Kids at Soundwave earlier this year they put on a great performance and I was really looking forward to hearing what they would put out next. Unfortunately when “Simple Science” – the band’s first new recorded material in six years arrived and my mailbox and I gave it a listen, it was not what I was expecting to hear at all.

To be fair, the EP’s opening track “Your Petty Pretty Things” is a really great track, which wouldn’t sound out of place on one of the band’s previous releases. When I first heard this song I had high expectations for the rest of the EP purely because of how much I liked this song. The song shows glances of brilliance that the band has become renowned for. So after how great the opening track was, I was left a little confused with two of the remaining tracks on the EP. The bass heavy “Keith Case” showed signs of promise during the song’s chorus, but unfortunately failed go anywhere. The use of electronic effects during the song isn’t what I was expecting to hear, and to be honest; I wasn’t a fan of it at all.

“Tommy Gentle” also shows signs of what the band has become cherished for, and although it isn’t as strong as the EP’s opening track – after a few listens this song also becomes quite enjoyable. It shows that Matt Pryor's voice hasn’t lost any of it’s magic over the years, something that fans can be praising. Clocking in at just over six minutes, the EP’s closing track “How You're Bound” once again goes with the more electronic feel, and tends to drag on a bit longer than it should have. If you had any thoughts that the band might have been making a return to the classic sound they had on their “Something To Write Home About” record, this track will without a doubt bury those thoughts for good.

A few people had told me that this EP is a grower, and that after a few listens it becomes a real gem. Unfortunately I listened to it quiet a lot and I still can’t hear it. This is the first in the band’s “Simple Science” EP series, so hopefully the band can blow me away with the next EP, and that this EP can be easily forgotten about.

This EP isn’t terrible by any means, but when you compare this to the band’s back catalogue it doesn’t come close. I’m sure a bunch of people will disagree with me about this, but I can’t help but feel a tad disappointed by this release.

1. Your Petty Pretty Things

2. Keith Case

3. Tommy Gentle

4. How You're Bound