Too much hype is something that can kill a band in the end of things because there's a good chance that said band never lives up to it and ends up being tagged a disappointment for the rest of their careers. Thankfully, this is not the case at all with Illinois quartet Dear Landlord's debut album, Dream Homes,, which has been heavily anticipated for months by the punk community. Dear Landlord may only have two splits with Off With Their Heads and Chinese Telephones under their belt (along with a few members playing in The Copyrights and The Rivetheads) but they come out strong on Dream Homes.
Dear Landlord play a gritty style of pop-punk that's not too far off from the sound Off With Their Heads had on their stellar 2008 effort, From the Bottom. They do a fantastic job at disguising melancholy, self-deprecating songs as fast, catchy pop-punk tunes. The melodies and hooks on Dream Homes are huge and will mostly likely be trapped inside your head for a long time. They also use a vocal approach similar to early Dillinger Four with the two vocalists trading off lines with each other to create a lot of great sing-along lines, with "High Fives" and "The Last Time I Checked" being the high points. The duo also sing in unison on many occasions, which is where I feel they work best, the chorus of "Landlocked" and the intro of "Begging for Tips" being good examples. Along with the dual vocal attack, the main thing that separates Dear Landlord from Off With Their Heads is that they are more heavily influenced by classic pop-punk bands like The Ramones and Screeching Weasel along with their standard Midwestern punk sound.
All of the lyrics on Dream Homes seem to tell short tale of the band's adventures of touring, a short-lived love story or how they live life the way they want to. The opener, "I Live in Hell," has the band telling us of where they've lived all their lives and asking us all "What does your dream home look like?" A line that you'll remember for a long time. "Three to the Beach's" call-out line of "We're not that hopeless, we're not as fucked as you think, in short live moments we can do anything" is another line that will be jammed in your memory for awhile. "Rosa" and "Lost Cause" seem to have a theme of failed relationships. The theme of "Landlocked" is a bit more hopeful as the band shouts, "maybe tomorrow you wont be miserable and looking for an exit" to end the song. The main riff of the song is also echoed in "A World That We Never Made" which has the band showing disgust at ordinary life and those who strive to reach the American dream.
Well, there's not many things to dislike about this record other than it's not exactly reinventing the wheel. But you listen to this and tell me it's not enjoyable. Dear Landlord have made something great with Dream Homes. It's a fully engaging record that will pull you in almost immediately and has a ton of staying power with how addictive a lot of these songs are. Dear Landlord have nearly mastered this style of punk on Dream Homes. Alongside Propagandhi and Dinosaur Jr., this is one of the front runners to be the best album of 2009.
