Some good moments but underwhelming
Sad Planets is a unique two-man band who just released their debut album Akron Ohio marketed under the label “psychedelic trash.” Upon first glance, one might be confused as to why the album is named after a relatively random city in northern Ohio, but a quick Google search lets us know that this is because Akron is the hometown of the band’s two members–singer/guitarist John Petkovic and drummer Patrick Carney. Both members are better known for different projects: Petkovic for the 1980s post-punk band Death of Samantha, and Carney, more notably, for the Grammy Award-winning blues-rock duo The Black Keys. Although neither member still lives in Akron–Petkovic’s rise was in Cleveland, while Carney lives in Nashville–the two still felt enough of a connection to their hometown that they chose to record the album there.
The first track is titled “Just Landed,” and it fuses a heavy Bowie vibe with shimmering guitar leads and Carney’s straight-ahead drumming. After that comes “Not Of This World,” which starts with a lot of aggression in the verses, before switching into a Free Bird-esque middle section. Track 3, “Yesterday Girls,” is both the album’s bounciest track and features its best guitar riff. “City Ghosts” is next, and it brings a creepy baritone guitar opening and ‘ghostly’ reverb-heavy vocals. The first half of the album wraps up with “Bad Cells” and its overt blues nature.
Unfortunately, the second half of Akron Ohio isn’t as interesting as the first. “Want You To Want You” is a solid track with a bouncy doo-wop vibe, but the chorus’ lack of variety derails the song’s momentum. While the acoustic guitar of “(Falling Into The Arms Of A) Refuge”’ is a refreshing change of pace, the song is overall nothing special. “Long Goodbye” is even more thoroughly unremarkable. “Heaven’s Devils” brings a garage rock feel to the party and brings interest back, but “Disappearing” is a boring closer.
Overall, while Sad Planets have managed to put together a collection of good songs, not enough of them stood out from each other. It’s never a bad thing when two musical legends decide to collaborate, but given the duo’s natural talent and common threads, it’s surprising this didn’t become more.
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