I Call Fives - Bad Advice Review

It’s a downright crime how some music doesn’t get the attention it deserves. Even on this website, where we strive to cover the best and biggest of new releases, there is occasionally a worthwhile one that falls through the cracks. While it’s bound to happen and is darn near unavoidable, that doesn’t make it any less of a complete bummer that the release in question didn’t get the review it deserved.

At this particular juncture, the release in question is I Call Fives’ Bad Advice EP. This six song effort is not only one of the better EPs put out in 2010, but it has cemented I Call Fives as one of a growing group of current pop punk acts that are making moves in the new decade. I Call Fives are doing it themselves, constantly touring and consistently forwarding their name and making themselves a bigger part of this scene that we’re all in together.

What makes the EP so worthy of note? Well the easiest answer is the purely explosive and upbeat nature of I Call Fives’ sound. Jeff Todd’s vocals are some of the most enjoyable you’ll hear from this genre in 2010, right up there with Matty Arsenault’s work with A Loss for Words. The guitar work offered up by Mike Gavarone and Ant Plata, while not breaking any boundaries, is hook-laden and all that a listener should desire in a release like this.

Bad Advice begins with its best two songs, “Hand Me Down Luck” and “Elevator Music”. The former serves as a swell opener while the latter is dangerously infectious and ranks among the better sing-alongs this year. It has climbed to the northern regions of my iTunes play count as a song that people will return to even after years have passed.

“Try Hard to Remember” is highlighted by Todd’s work in the chorus, where he belts out “So try hard to remember / All the people you once called friends / And you'll find me waiting with a smile once a part of me / Will you miss me when I swear that I'm gone?” Meanwhile, “Easy to Say States Away” and “Two Days or A Lifetime of Failure” shine with glistening guitar hooks and solid rhythm provided by Steve Cohen behind the kit and Drew Conte on bass.

“Take the Fall” proves to be the album’s low point as it is all too predictable of a closer. Starting acoustic and ending in a built-up crescendo, it’s a song that has been done again and again but in this case isn’t executed well enough to stand out. This is an outlier on the album, though, as the preceding five songs are chock full of pop punk goodness....full text At first listen, I Call Fives’ new album reminded me of something we don’t hear enough; a young band with music that surpasses bands at the top of the genre, both in composition and musicianship.

These five young guys out of New Jersey are where it’s at in the pop-punk world. May 25th, they released their latest album Bad Advice and I haven’t been able to stop listening.

All around, this album blew me away. The vocals are flawlessly composed and arranged, and sounding alike the vocalist of Flight 409 or Head Automatica. I instantly found myself humming and la-la-ing along, after running through the album a handful of times, not even knowing the words yet. The harmonies and layering are addicting; so well-done and professionally composed that I couldn’t help but sing along to them as well.

They highly compliment the guitar work, which was constantly changing, never boring, never amateur or thrown-together, and recorded beautifully. In addition, the bass lines are refreshing; tagging along the guitar riffs, branching off to rip clever fills and lines, with a very thick, full sound that carried the tone and well-complimented the drumming.

I don’t know how many music listeners out there critique or pay heed to the recording quality of records, but I am very meticulous. The drums on this record sound phenomenal. The hi-hat and snare are crisp, the kick is beautiful and punchy, the toms are deep and full, and the cymbals are sharp and neat; it truly helps show how articulate and precise drummer Steve Cohen is behind the kit.

Engineering an album can make or break the music, and these guys found an engineer that complimented their package beautifully. Every instrument and vocal layer is mixed and edited perfectly, and has a thick, full tone. It just goes to show both how far these guys deserve to go, and how hard they are willing to work at getting there....full text With 'Bad Advice', New Jersey's I Call Fives push themselves one step forward to marking their territory on the pop punk'colony with their catchy chorus' and pounding guitars.

'Hand Me Down Luck' is an adrenaline fueled fist pumper compromised of pure honesty and bitterness. Whilst 'Elevator Music' is a song filled to the brim with spite and original imagery in the chorus. The amount of raw hatred as the lead vocalist, Jeff Todd, sings "You've got the rest of your life to figure out that everything was gonna be fine".

After 5 songs of energetic, fast paced songs, the album finally slows down in the form of 'Take the Fall' which eventually comes crashing down in the final chorus. This is where Kory Gable (who has also worked with Flood of Red, The Dangerous Summer and Senses Fail) shows off his production skills to the fullest potential.

The accompanying EP 'Gives Bad Advice' (that can be downloaded from the No Sleep Records store*) is four new songs that shows the bands ability to translate into an acoustic setting.

Despite the fact that the pop-punk genre hasn't brought out many notable artists. In a few years, I Call Fives could easily take the crown as the new kings of pop-punk, as 'Bad Advice' shows a band to reach the heights of bands such as New Found Glory, The Dangerous Summer and All Time Low....full text