For Fans of: Voxtrot, Tom Petty (sans Heartbreakers more than with)
Download: “Whose Authority,” “I Like What You Say,” “Ice on the Wing”
4/5 stars
Nada Surf has come a long way since After the 90’s smash hit “Popular” came and went. Their inability to craft another chart-topper got them dropped from their label. However, Nada Surf kept going, at first with a sour taste in their mouth from their first dealings with the record industry, but eventually they have reemerged. They’re so over their past bitterness that, despite the bad feelings the song used to bring, lead singer Matthew Caws now says the song has become funny again. That’s nice to hear because it really is hilarious.
Even more telling of the transformation from the “Popular” Nada Surf to the Nada Surf we see today is that, at this point, their best-known songs come from later in their career. In part this is thanks to their presence on television. A cover of OMD’s “If You Leave” aired on “The O.C.,” “Inside of Love” and “Always Love” were both featured on “One Tree Hill” and “Weightless,” which is from this latest album, premiered on “Heroes” this season. Pretty good for a band that was once dropped for not being able to produce a follow up hit.
“Lucky” is not a departure from the Nada Surf that we’re accustomed to. The differences between it and their last two albums, “Let Go” and “The Weight is a Gift” are small. The biggest difference is in the pace of the songs. Overall, “Lucky” is a much slower album. While it does have moments where it picks up, for instance on “From Now On” and the chorus of “I Like What You Say,” it is by and large a much more ponderous album. That said, what “Lucky” lacks in pace, it makes up in hooks.
The guitar lines in “See These Bones” build the song’s momentum throughout the verses and in the choruses. Caws’ vocals drive the chorus and break with well-placed backup vocals provided throughout the track by Sean Nelson of Harvey Danger and Ben Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie. The song builds slowly throughout making it one of the most invigorating and best tracks on the album.
“Whose Authority” and “Beautiful Beat” both have memorable lyrics while keeping within the realm of what a stereotypical Nada Surf song should sound like. “Here Goes Something” sounds significantly different, almost like Nada Surf’s take on country music. The added percussion and twang to the guitar lines and even, to an extent, to Caws’ vocals make it a brief, intriguing departure. At just over two minutes it’s definitely a fun little ditty filled with country charm.
Reverb-heavy guitar effects control the majority of the sound on “The Fox”. While it makes the song sound eerie, which appears to be its purpose, it eventually becomes annoying. Even when it retreats into the background, the reverb dominates the song. Thus, “The Fox” is without a doubt the low point in the album. The rest of “Lucky”, including “I Like What You Say,” “Weightless,” and “Ice on the Wing” all hover in the realm of the typical Nada Surf, something easy to listen to and enjoy, full of hooks, and perceptive lyrics, which is why this album, while nothing revolutionary, is a solid addition to this band’s twisting discography.