Sweet Reaper Still Nothing LP
SWEET REAPER’s Still Nothing is their fourth LP since 2015, and this Ventura three-piece continues to operate in the same waters as the Denton, Texas power pop/punk axis—think MIND SPIDERS, MARKED MEN, RADIOACTIVITY—so it tracks that Jeff Burke mastered the album. But these beach rats aren’t coasting on the comparison. They bring a distinctly Southern Californian sweetness to the formula, at times layering some tight vocal harmonies over the buzz and drive, with tracks like “Zero Candles” and “Meemees” adding a ’60s pop warmth. Seth Pettersen’s vocals sit in a familiar upper register, but at times he adds a Billie Joe Armstrong-esque nasal whine. Lyrically, the album lives in a state of exhaustion without surrender: relationships crumbling, systems failing, but still just enough gas in the tank to keep moving. This is fucking good! Eleven songs and not a dud in the bunch. Also available on cassette from the band’s Naked Time Tapes.