Published on Oct 17, 2002
Not that ambivalence ever asked to have poster children — it
really hasn’t made up its mind yet, you see — but if it had, the
Gin Blossoms would have to be on the short list. From the brightly
oxymoronic title of their second major-label album
Congratulations I’m Sorry, to the rich, bouncy guitar hooks
they use to support their often-mournful lyrics, these guys seem
determined to have it both ways. Nowhere is this more apparent than
in this album’s major-video-rotation track “Follow You Down,” whose
thoroughly infectious central hook lights up a song about
co-dependent depression.
The results here and elsewhere in this 12-song-plus-intermission
set, while sometimes incongruous, are consistently entertaining and
well-executed. The lyrics can lean to self-pity at times, but offer
subtle imagery and sparkling twists of phrase (e.g. “full sail in
the gutter,” “nothing like a bad decision says who you are” and the
whole concept of a “Competition Smile”). It’s also nice to see a
band where everybody contributes to the songwriting.
There are big rewards waiting on the instrumental side, as well.
The fat-and-juicy twin-lead guitars Jesse Valenzuela and Scott
Johnson offer up front are supported by sharp ensemble playing,
with instrumental flashes and fills from bassist Bill Leen and
drummer Phillip Rhodes that complement the driving lead riffs of
songs like “Day Job” and “Perfectly Still” smartly without getting
in their way. Robin Wilson’s lead vocals stay deep in the mix much
of the time, but are plenty strong enough to stand up and be heard
when they need to be.
Gin Blossoms may have blown their whole ambivalent image in one
respect, though. In an era when everybody and their sister was
hopping on the grunge / industrial / speed-metal / hip-hop /
ambient / acid-jazz / trendy-sub-genre-of-the-week bandwagon, these
guys made the gutsy commitment to play straight-ahead, hook-laden,
all-guitar rock and roll. Well, except for their nicely executed
country turn on “Memphis Time;” what was that all about — oh,
geez, these guys really are good at this, aren’t they?