Passion.

When it comes to music, there’s a lot to be said for passion. Sure, outright musical talent, voice work, lyrical competency, and a good producer are the keys to making a good song or a worthwhile album, but without passion it’s only so much noise. In an art as fickle and as subjective as music, any missing component can deeply and profoundly affect the artist’s output, making or breaking them into the next big thing or a desperate wannabe.

InsertNameHere is a pop-punk outfit from our city, and they just launched their independently produced debut album Tuesdays and Thursdays Off. The band members are good friends, with Oscar Flores on guitar and vocals, Arthur Atkins on bass, keys, and vocals, Jesus Acevedo on drums, and frontman Ray Acevedo on Guitar and vocals. And while the music is fine for what it is, the album lacks that passion that is so necessary to separate themselves from the thousands of other similar bands out there.

InsertNameHere’s sound is reminiscent of blink-182, Sum 41, Sr-71, and other pop punk bands that exploded into the mainstream in the late 90s, with a tinge of more modern and a bit more popular emo bands gracing the music scene now. This sound could be a welcome pseudo flashback to the middle and high school years of today’s twenty-somethings, giving the band an instant fanbase to entice and conquer. However, there’s a few reasons why this sound disappeared; namely, the evolution and maturing of the above-mentioned pop punk bands, the genre’s subcategorizing into emo and screamo, and the mainstream saturation of similar sounding bands. Is the music scene ready for a return to the lowest-common-denominator humor of the late 90s? An argument can be made that, yes, it could very well be on a comeback (blink-182’s recent reunion tour was a smashing success) and maybe InsertNameHere is poised to take a bit of that limelight, assuming their sound and lyrics make a few more adjustments; as they stand, the music is unrefined and in need of polish.

Tuesdays and Thursdays Off begins with the up tempo “Groundhog’s Day”, a bass heavy song that, while decent enough, doesn’t really give the album a great first impression. It’s just a bit too slow to give the album a kick; the follow-up song “Perfect Girl” would have been a much better lead-in and serves as a great way to let the listener know about InsertNameHere’s sound. It’s fast, has plenty of catchy hooks, and has light, humorous lyrics like “My perfect girl, she’ll smack my ass whenever she can” and “My perfect girl, she thinks that boy bands are gay”, and a sound that’s solid enough to hold the song together. Truthfully, though, the album doesn’t really catch on until the sixth track “Girlfriend Thinks I’m Gay”, an honestly laugh-out-loud hilarious track that could have very well charted back in the pop punk heyday. This track seems to be the first track that really clicks the band’s music, vocals, and pacing into something worth listening to a second and third time. Indeed, this track could very well highlight what is wrong with the first five tracks, showcasing a seemingly more confident and comfortable Ray shining behind the microphone. It’s more evident in the song “Mind Masturbation”, a coming-of-age punk song that really ignites and explodes beyond the tracks that precede it; as far as fast-paced straight punk songs, “Mind Masturbation” does the job and does it well. The true highlight of the album, though, comes with ninth track “Piece Of Mind”, a ballad with a minimalist beat juxtaposed with a rich, full melody of keys and guitars accompanied by strings.  It really stands out from the rest of the album, and though the lyrics are simple and clichéd, Ray’s voice really gives the song that extra passion that the album so sorely lacks.

The bass slapping by Arthur Atkins goes a long way towards keeping the various instruments’ parts together, even moreso than Jesus Acevedo’s drumming. It’s evident that the guys have their practice sessions, and while the other three members of the band do a good enough job in playing their parts, Atkins obviously claims the band’s lion share of talent. It’s understandable, then, that many of the songs feature heavy bass play; Atkins is dynamic behind the instrument, and if there’s anything that will make the listener stand up and take notice, it’s him. The only problem with this is that Ray is the frontman – and it’s only more frustrating to know that Ray is fully capable of being a really good one at that. Unfortunately, his potential only comes through in a fraction of the songs on the album. Given time, Ray can possibly put together a true frontman persona, leading his band with fervor and enthusiasm…he just needs to keep that passion.

Visit <Insert Name Here> official site, www.inhpunk.com for more information about the band.

MyHoustonLife Review: C

Must-Listen Tracks:
“Girlfriend Thinks I’m Gay”
“Mind Masturbation”
“Piece Of Mind”