Laguardia - Welcome To The Middle

Fair or not, humans judge things on a comparative basis. Hell, almost every review on this website will make a reference or two to how a band sounds like so and so, or the guitar is derivative of what’s his name. Of course, sometimes it is the easiest and best way to describe something, but sometimes you lose something in the comparison. Example: I feed you a piece of pumpkin pie and ask you if it is good and you reply, “Well, no pumpkin pie will ever be as good as my Grandmother's, but this is really good.” What the hell does that mean? At once it makes it sound kind of bad because it is nowhere near good enough in a comparative view, but at the same time it is really good. A fair judging is lost. So, I could tell you how much Laguardia is derivative of Radiohead, and how Joshua Ostrander’s voice sounds like Thom on some tracks, or even Billy Corgan on others, but I won’t. Every other review on the internet will do that. Truth? Yes, they do sound derivative of Radiohead. Yes, that might over shadow a lot of the album. BUT, that would ignore and overshadow what is good. Welcome To The Middle is actually quite a great album if you listen to it from start to finish and ignore your urge to compare. Tracks like “Duct Tape” and “Bull Ride” strum along with a melody that flies through the headphones and into your skull, where it will stick for a good long while like peanut butter to the roof of your mouth. Laguardia builds songs quite well, from a beginning to a middle to an end, the band does a superlative job of making songs out of their music, not just putting together hits with no structure. Album highlight “Sleepover (116 Overture)” finishes off the listen quite well. Not an album critics will drool over (well critics other than me. But then again… screw them!), and not a likely commercial success, but a solidly crafted piece of work that makes me interested in where the band will go from here. Ignore the comparisons and just enjoy what is a very good album. [www.laguardiamusic.com]