The Front Bottoms have never made a bad album, and this rings true for their latest EP “Ann”. This EP follows the “grandma” format of one of their older EP’s “Rose” in which the band “remixed” some of their older material and included a few newer tracks as well.
In an interview about “Rose,” the band said that their audience could expect projects like this in the future, and here we are four years later. Throughout their entire discography, the Front Bottoms’ sound has remained consistent, while they also add a few new, final touches, to really bring their songs together.
This EP begins with three new tracks, “Today Is Not Real,” “Somebody Else,” and “I Think Your Nose Is Bleeding.” These tracks are quality, Front Bottoms music, and their fans will definitely be able to recognize that they are still the same band as they were in 2008.
Of these three songs, “Today Is Not Real” stuck out to me the most and this is because I really enjoyed the lyrics “In a half hour I’ll be fine, the next 29 minutes are gonna flow like concrete,” essentially meaning that the narrator has found himself in a bad situation and time is moving as slow as liquid concrete.
I also really enjoyed how there were moments of the song where vocalist Brian Sella would sing “Ill feel better” and then immediately integrate background vocals that scream “Ill feel better!” which could represent how the inside of his brain is screaming that things will get better.
Moving forward, track 4 “Pale Beneath the Tan (Squeeze)" and track 5, “Lonely Eyes” were originally recorded on the band's earlier EP “I Hate My Friends.” However, I definitely prefer the original recordings compared to their “remixed” versions, this is due to how the new songs sounded over-produced.
I feel like the original recordings were rawer, and had more emotion to them. I’m happy that the band will play some of their older tracks when they’re on tour, however, maybe they should release “I Hate My Friends” and “My Grandma Vs. Pneumonia” on vinyl, hmm?
Track 6 “Tie Dye Dragon” was absolutely phenomenal. This was my favorite “new” Front Bottoms track on this EP and there are so many reasons why this song is exquisite. The first lyric “I was on LSD when I saved that family, and I was on LSD at all the talk shows after” instantly hooks onto the listener due to the ridiculousness of the lyrics.
I also love how the band used violins in this track, as well as the way they build up anticipation in the song that eventually explodes after Sella sings “When something dies, that’s it, it's dead, I gotta let it be”.
This EP was excellent aside from the new production of “Squeeze” and “Lonely Eyes,” which in my opinion were already perfect and didn’t need to be tampered with.
Overall, I enjoyed this EP more than “Rose” because it featured more, new-er tracks. I look forward to hearing more from the band and their “grandma” EP’s. “Ann” received a 7 or a soft 8 out of 10, and I would definitely buy this album on vinyl.
