Published on Dec 1, 2022
The cleverly titled sequel to the Vancouver outfit Night Court's debut Nervous Birds, this second installment thankfully continues their punk, pop, garage, emo and hardcore concoction across 12 brief but impactful tunes.
The quick affair opens with the energetic and pounding “Afraid Of The Dark,” where melodic vocals meet chunky bass and thumping drums, and this formula continues to the rumbling and harmonic garage-rock nods of “Shitty Confidential.”
The pace is trimmed back with reflective tone of “The Greatest Dream,” where the ’90s post-punk moments won't go unnoticed, nor will the scrappy intensity of the shimmering punk that occupies “Titanic.” “Kill The Poor,” the best tune from Side A, then finds a very busy place to reside with its radiant guitar and gritty rhythm section.
The back half leads with the thick bass of “Surfing Iona” that quickly shifts into a lively, modern indie-rock anthem, and this is complemented by the noisy yet tuneful haze of the absolute best track present, “For The Birds.”
Inching towards the end, “No Can Do” offers a bit of a quirkiness amid the wordless vocals, while “Where's Waldo?” exits the listen with a dense demeanor and a buzzing dreaminess that finishes with just as much allure as the record began.
Recording during the pandemic, much like for their debut, Dave, Emilor and Jiffy, i.e. Night Court, only include a single tune here that surpasses two minutes, and they're all over the spectrum with fuzzed-out bass, animated drumming and charged melodies to fuel their raw lo-fi, catchy punk and power-pop ways.
With this album available as a pay-what-you-want download, you’ve really got nothing to lose, and you might just gain a new favorite band. If you want something physical, well, there’s 100 clear cassettes made (with a DL code) for those of us who still have a tape deck.