Rollers - Somewhere Along The Way

Rollers

Somewhere Along The Way
self-released; 2017

​4.0 out of 5

By Jamie Robash

There’s a reason why rock n’ roll is as popular in all its forms as it is, has always been, and always will be. It will never ever ever die. That reason is because all you need to do to produce it is to play a few chords and make yourself sound like you’re having fun. Smile while you talk on the phone they tell you in customer service jobs, and that smile will project to the person you’re talking to. This rhetoric applied to rock music has produced so much great music it’s not even funny. But why should music be hard? Sometimes it should but most times it should just be fun and very nonchalant, something to listen to on a commute or while getting loaded at a bar or a house party. Many bands have made quite a good living off this format. 

​One such band to apply the aforementioned formula of rock n’ roll are the bi coastal two-some Rollers. The New York, by way of San Diego, duo have just released their debut Somewhere Along The Way, a five-song EP of party-hardy blues inspired rock tunes with a decent amount of organ vibes to give it that lift that makes it hard to resist. It’s formulaic but catchy as hell and reminded me of how much fun music can be if you just let it be that: fun. 

On Somewhere Along The Way singer/songwriter Erik Mullin and guitarist TJ Royer dabble in the bluesy garage rock that was made famous early by bands like Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and later by the more famous garage-blues gurus of the Black Keys. The record has all the sentiments of their predecessors; fat and gummy hooks and lyrics that gesticulate the world of people who make their living in the service industry while trying to make a career in the world of art and music. Funny that the world of nine to five cubicle sitting suit and tie kids are the ones who made this type of music lucrative for such bands. 

As far as Somewhere Along the Way is concerned the record is pretty true to form to its aforementioned predecessors. The lead off track “Going Nowhere” is a blues rock riff laden gospel choir ode to the gods of the genre. But they burn great offerings at the pyre cuz its fun. Even more fun is the organ laden, hand clapping “Don’t Lead Me On.”  It’s a typical song by a man about a woman, (spoiler alert it didn’t work out hence the song) but it’s fun. It’s fun because it sounds like somewhere between the formula that Kinks and then the Strokes found and never really let go of like a teething puppy with a chew toy. 

At the end of the day Somewhere Along the Way is like a pop rock romance novel. There are several authors who write about the same shit but you always read till the end because you just can’t stop yourself.

This is not a knock - much rather a feather in the cap of a band that knows how to write super sweet bit of songs and still pull off an original sound. The five- minute instrumental closer cements the fact that Rollers know how to roll with what works but also are smart enough to keep from making themselves stagnant.

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