This is Pennywise front man Jim Lindberg's debut solo album and is rather more acoustic than you might expect. Having not been a fan of Pennywise I'm afraid I can't compare it to any of their work. For me this is an album about emotional pain and trying to find the help you need and hopefully finding that your friends are there for you in your hour of need.
The album opens with The Palm Of Your Hand a song about the hard scrabble life of growing up with nothing and trying to make something out of it, as he makes a plea for you to let your feelings show and go for it, that's sung over some acoustic indie pop this has a soaring chorus that sounds like it will be a live anthem in no time at all.
I Feel Like the Sun has a battered and bruised feel to it, as this is another song of survival and sounds a lot like some of TV Smith's recent solo work. I really like the trumpets that come in and out of the mix.
You're Not Alone is a song of hope and the need to be able to take the help and advice that's out there when everything turns to shit and you think you have no way out, vocally this is a bit Billy Joe Armstrong like.
Hello Again is a song of someone sitting down and getting drunk and maudlin while thinking about his recently departed dad and what happens when you get blind drunk with mourning, as the barman throws you out, as you've fallen asleep with your head in your drink again. Redemption might be round the corner, but youll need to sober up first.
Don't Lay Me Down seems to be re-working Saved By The Bell into a string laden plea to be allowed to just sleep it off, while having bitter regrets for a friend whose gone far too soon and the hurt and pain they've left behind.
Not One Of Them doesn't sound too influenced by Black Flag's My War, it's raging gently against the so called friends who are all surface and no depth, who never offer a helping hand when you need it, make sure you're not one of them.
Blood On Your Hands opens with some harmonica that makes this sound a bit Dylanesque only played at a Green Day pace as he asks questions about someone whose let everyone they should have loved and trusted down and only have themselves to blame.
Good Enough is a song for the street people drinking and drugging their way through life rather than using their money for housing and food and Jim being grateful that he's not on the streets with them. This is a heartfelt song for America's vast legion of the dispossessed, it doesn't have a solution but then short of total revolution America's problems really are impossible to solve.
It's Only taking aim at some of the madness of America's current political dilemma, and the need some people have to go into space as a means of distraction, it's a slowly strummed song with some nice Violin draped around it.
The Basement is a song of fear as he doesn't want to go down into The Basement almost like he's scared it's going to go all horror movie down there. This is not some cool music club in a basement, much more the suburban horror show basement.
On Fire is a song of hope for everything you've survived to become a musician, all the fights and scrapes and troubles you've overcome to get to where you are. Never give up on your dreams and eventually you'll get to set the town On Fire.
The album closes with Long Way To Go one more bruised and battered tale of survival and how long that road is, just go ahead and follow your dreams and hopefully everything will fall into place, the violin on this is reminiscent of The Silos and this is a really nice gentle song of hope to conclude a very thoughtful album.
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