J. Page - Goodbye Chapel Hill

J. Page's debut EP, Goodbye Chapel Hill, packs enough punch in 15 minutes to make your head pound for a few hours, but even for a punk band, this is not entirely a good thing. In their defense, it's tough for any band to sell itself in five songs. Even still, it doesn't require an approach that resembles a first-grader trying to get his classroom crush’s attention by giving her a noogie. That said, Goodbye Chapel Hill is one rough and sweaty ride. At its best, it’s an honest rock record that pays good tribute to its punk ancestors. The band plays its guts out, and its shortcomings clearly aren’t the result of any lack of effort. But J. Page is still an infant – the band is comprised of ex-members of The Scaries and As Friends Rust – and will undoubtedly develop more tact with age. So far though, it seems the 'grip it and rip it' approach suits them best. The opening track, “Unlucky at Cards,” is an earnest stampede in which they sound a lot like a horn-less version of the Mighty Mighty Bosstones (Singer Christopher Beckham passes for a poor man’s Dicky Barrett). Some of that energy carries into the alcohol anthems, “Beer Me Asswipe” and “Personal Space Invader,” but a bit of it gets lost in slightly moronic lyrics. Nevertheless, it’s all in good fun. Things only really dissolve when the band goes for the over-the-top emo route on the title song and on “Dying Staying Here.” Dangerous bands don’t pout – they rage, and the whining vocals completely dull the band’s edge on these two tracks. Michael Magarelli handles the singing on both of them, and the band would be better off if he got out of the way and left all the screaming to Beckham. In all, the guys from Gainesville really spilled their hearts on to this record. It would be a lot better if they didn’t make such a mess. [www.jpagerock.beetlenation.com]