So to start off this review, I want to admit to something. I never really got into Social Distortion. In fact, other than their cover of Ring of Fire, I couldn’t tell you the name of a single Social Distortion song. Nothing I ever heard about the band made me want to take the time to check them out. For one thing, they sell about ten times as much merch as they do music, which doesn’t necessarily mean they’re a terrible band (the same could be said of The Misfits, and I love The Misfits), but from hearing their hits on the radio, and never knowing anyone who’s music taste I trusted that was way into Social Distortion, I guess I just passed them up.
I bring this up because EraseToday sounds like what I think Social Distortion probably sounds like. For the longest time I wanted to compare them to Swingin’ Utters, but with a more straightforward, sort of lowdown feel. But why am I even talking about this? Comparing bands to other bands is the lazy way to review music.
I think EraseToday has a great spirit. I say that because along with the actual album, I also pulled out of the free box this personal note from the band:
It may be a bit heavy-handed, but what I appreciate from this sort of sentiment, is that it really strongly suggests that the kids in EraseToday really, really like being in a band, and are super into what they’re doing.
What they’re doing is a steady, soft (for what it is) barrage of songs that all sound a little like each-other. It’s certainly not a bad record. It’s solid. What it definitely suggests is that EraseToday has limitless potential. I guess I feel like this recording suffers from too many songs with too little chutzpah. It’s definitely worth a listen, but I’d love to hear a five song demo by EraseToday where they go all out for the sake of making the songs exciting.