The Nude Party - The Nude Party

The Nude Party
The Nude Party
2018
Spotify

I think as a rule whenever youi see a band with the name The Nude Party you should go ahead and listen to that album, regardless of what it sounds like. The band got their start playing house parties at Appalachian State in North Carolina, jamming and drinking beers. You can imagine the somewhat idyllic nature of playing this kind of 60s psychedelic rock for kids more accustomed to listening to Taylor Swift. They sound like a mix of Tom Petty and the Doors, real Americana style rock in some places and full synth organ in others. This is music to tap your foot to, sing a long with and just sit back and enjoy. It's not breaking any boundaries or reinventing a genre, it's just really nice down home rock that is recognizable to almost anyone. This is music your Dad played or would have played maybe if The Nude Party were around in his hey day. The sense of honky-tonk is so alive on this record from the vocals that sound like they are being blasted through a tin can to the blarring piano everything about this record feels light and fun. "Chevrolet Van" features the lyrics: "You’ll never make enough money And no one cares about the things you say You’re gonna wake up someday And you’ll wish you got a job", playing both sides of the crisis Millenials are having trying to find a place where they can be successful in the world while also outlying the fact that you do indeed just have to get a fucking job sometimes.

There are times however where the band feel a bit to dated for their own good. While "War is Coming" might be a apt idea in the air today, it sounds like this is a protest song from the 60s, I mean it is dead on. Even when they mention "New Orleans" on the track they say it with this Classic Rock accent that is so not cool. It is the times on the record where the slide into the Classic Rock tropes that feel the most dated and unnecessary. Songs like "Gringo Che" feel out of fucking touch in a major way and the final third of the album sort of drags along with the band trying to pull it along. On "Wild Coyote" you get this vocal delivery that has like this odd arble, it's very recognizable from classic rock but lands here with an absolute thud. The Nude Party are best when they are being reverential to the past, but also infusing something new into their tunes, otherwise they might as well just play some covers. The shoot for the hippie set on "Astral Man" but it crawls and crawls, allowing the band to shift into some of their more jam bandy habits. The Nude Party is a nice first start for these guys, but if they are going to stay around they need to bring something new to the table.

7.0 out of 10