Pink Sticky Lies

The Everyothers' follow-up to their 2003 self-titled debut is a punchy little EP called Pink Sticky Lies. Short and sweet, the disc packs in five catchy tracks of reasonably enjoyable listening. The band retains the decidedly '70s influence that characterized its previous album, but this release gives the impression that the band's sphere of influence has evolved over the past three years. While vocalist Owen McCarthy still takes a cue from the likes of David Bowie and Iggy Pop, his style is now more focused, narrowing in on his lower range. He sounds like he's now taking inspiration from contemporary indie rock invasion bands like Interpol and Franz Ferdinand, though it's possible that he is drawing on their source material (Joy Division, Television, etc.). He even shares a vocal space with Mel Tormé at times in his swaggering delivery, which the rest of the band is usually able to compensate for by dipping a little further into crunchy garage rock. The instrumentation on Pink Sticky Lies shies away from the janglier sounds of their last album and holds tight to a more masculine-sounding rock. The result of this shift may be catchier tunes, but the Everyothers went overboard in their attempt to streamline their sound, as the disc noticeably lacks variety. The songs here are solid, but they lack the spark that comes through changes in tempo, energy, and mood. All five tracks are the exact same style, suggesting that the bandmembers weren't able to apply their newly developed sound to anything besides uptempo radio singles.