Albums
This Harness Can't Ride Anything
2006
Genre: Alternative
Release Date: 2006
By Jason Crock
Reviewed October 10, 2006
Chicago indie rock band's second album finds the group blitzing through several different styles rather than settling on one approach.
Those expecting a breakthrough from Chin Up Chin Up's second record might walk away disappointed, but the band's fans won't be-- is version 2.0 of the band's restless debut. The title track opens the album, and skips merrily by on gliding distortion and ringing Cure-like single notes while giving singer/guitarist Jeremy Bolen the space in the verse to carry the track. He does so somewhat awkwardly, but ably, with more than a little Robert Smith-like wavering in his otherwise everyman voice. "Harness" also bursts with tiny details, like the whipcrack of a drum pad or the groaning strings underneath the spritely organ. It's a little aurally crowded for a breezy rock single, but for the most part, it works.