Review / 200 Words Or Less
A Kid Named Thompson / Altus
Split

Seafoam (2009) Michael

A Kid Named Thompson / Altus – Split cover artwork
A Kid Named Thompson / Altus – Split — Seafoam, 2009

Two newcomers from Texas team up for a split 7" release. You get one track each, generally falling within the bounds of the indie music circuit.

A Kid Named Thompson is not a one-man emo guitarist - thank goodness. This three-piece outfit instead offers up "Fall Down," a three-minute venture of upbeat pop-rock. I'd liken them to Jimmy Eat World, thought the vocals aren't quite as powerful. Nevertheless, this is solid stuff and I can get into it.

Altus occupy the flipside of the 7" with their four-minute piece "The Ghost in You." The five-piece ensemble walks the line between 90's indie/emo and modern pop-rock. You get a nice combination of The Get Up Kids, Mineral, and Rival Schools. The inclusion of pianos and the female vocals definitely gives the band a different vibe, but it works.

This split is a nice snapshot of these two groups. They both are honing in on their respective sounds and I can see both of them going places if given the proper coverage.

7.0 / 10Michael • August 26, 2009

A Kid Named Thompson / Altus – Split cover artwork
A Kid Named Thompson / Altus – Split — Seafoam, 2009

Recently-posted album reviews

Burned Up Bled Dry

Next Stop… Dead Stop…
Prank (2026)

There’s no easing into Next Stop… Dead Stop… No buildup, no warning just impact. Fayetteville, Arkansas’ Burned Up Bled Dry return from decades of dormancy with a debut full-length that feels less like a comeback and more like a long-awaited detonation. Formed in 1996 and tied to that gnarlier mid-south hardcore lineage alongside bands like His Hero Is Gone and … Read more

Blue Ash

Dinner At Mr. Billy’s
Peppermint Records (2026)

Most people treat the Blue Ash story like a collection of "almosts" and they are sure missing the point.Almost famous, almost signed, almost the American Beatles. Forget that, erase that fable from your feeble grey matter. Dinner at Mr. Billy’s—straight from the Peppermint Productions vaults—proves they weren't just "lost" contenders. They were the engine room of the Rust Belt. While … Read more

Luxury Teeth

DCxPC Live & Dead, Vol. 3
DCxPC Live (2024)

There’s something inherently appealing about a record that doesn’t try to hide what a band actually sounds like. DCxPC Live & Dead, Vol. 3 captures Luxury Teeth in two very different settings and more importantly, shows that neither version feels like a compromise. Side A, the “Live” portion, was recorded at the Ottobar in Baltimore while opening for GBH, and … Read more