No Dream - Jeff Rosenstock: Review
Review By Lavender:
Even though I wasn't fully equipped to appreciate it at the time, Bomb The Music Industry was something pretty special in its heyday, and Jeff's commitment to the lo-fi aesthetic of the work to this very day is awesome. But when Jeff broke off on the back of his debut solo album in 2015 I was all in, even more so when he followed it up with Worry, likely my favorite record he has ever released under any of his projects to date. Even though I wasn't quite as in love with his third solo record Post- I still liked it enough to be excited for whatever he was going to do next. Now more than two years later when Jeff randomly drops his new record out of the blue on a weekday with no promotion I was already in and once I had heard the album I was even further committed to calling him one of the premiere artists in indie rock to this day.
This record gets off to a fiery start with its first two shorter tracks. No Time doesn't waste a second kicking the record off with a song that doesn't even reach the one minute mark yet totally embodies the lyrical themes of aimlessness that Jeff and his generation feel which are explored all over this record in an exciting punk fashion. The next song Nikes is even better and the nihilism continues right out of the gate on this track. The hook is a succinct moment but one that manages to be incredibly catchy despite the dejected nature of its lyrics. Once again Jeff goes on in the track to critique consumerism and its consequences with a fiery demeanor and it all clocks in at under two minutes. If both of these tracks sound like they are right up Jeff's alley its because a lot of the records 13 tracks fit really neatly into his greater discography.
State Line is a classic Jeff song with a huge change in instrumental ferocity halfway through its particularly wordy build-up. I'm not sure this is my favorite Jeff hook I've ever heard but it is performed with a ferocity that is intoxicating and I can't help but enjoy the instrumental freak out that closes the song off in a great way. f a m e is the track here that most sounds like something from Post- not only with its chanted singing but also the theme of the song which sees Jeff telling both his fans and the people who report on his music in the media that they don't own him and can't control him. It all lines up perfectly with the lo-fi aesthetic he has painted himself in for years and fits really well in the tracklist here. Monday At The Beach sounds like the start of a typically good Jeff song but it ends way too soon. For a song this short it takes a surprising amount of time building up to its key refrain and once we're there the song is basically over, it's a moment I wish we could have heard a lot more from.
Some of my favorite songs on the record come in its introspective but still blisteringly loud second half starting with Leave It In The Sun which is a drastic change of pace from the rest of the record in almost every way. The song reminds me of something Green Day would have written in the 90's only performed a little bit more aggressively as the song addresses growing up. While this is a very frequent theme across music Jeff brings his particularly nihilistic viewpoint to the song in a way that is both funny and a little bit concerning. Instrumentally the song is one of the catchiest here and despite some simplicity I absolutely love it. Old Crap may be my favorite song on the entire record. Not only does it have some of the most unique and fascinating instrumental moments on the record but it also comes tethered to some of my favorite lyrics. There is a constant stream of amazing writing on the song paired with a constantly driving ambitions instrumental, if the point of punk music is to freely speak your mind at 1000 mph this track is doing so perfectly. Ohio Tpike is the closing track and the longest one here, which I was a little bit worried about given that I didn't love the longest song on Post-. Thankfully this track is an excellent fiery closer to the album that manages to stay instrumentally fresh throughout the track in a variety of engaging ways. Jeff manages to bounce between some of his wildest and most incendiary vocals as well as some of his most intimate and personal and as a closing track the song manages to wrap up everything he does well into one excellent addition to the record.
There are a few tracks that do a lot right but I have some minor complaints about. Scram is one of the most conventional sounding songs here with a lyrical focus on those who have the privilege to have much more comfortable world views. The song certainly doesn't have one of my favorite hooks on the record but its message is specific and critical enough to help focus on the lyrics especially with some unique instrumental transitions between programmed drugs and natural percussion. N O D R E A M is a standout moment and its very clear why this is the title track. The messaging on this song is direct and brutal and addresses the fact that none of the problems in the world are going away no matter how much we ignore them. Jeff makes specific references to contemporary issues before justifiably lambasting those who turn the other cheek. The instrumental is on the breezier side but the more stripped back approach during the first half of the song is intentional because the lyrics are clearly the focus. The track has a major explosion of vocal and instrumental performance in the second half and even though I like a lot of the song once all hell breaks loose Jeff does push wayyyyy beyond his vocal range more than once during this period and I think it serves as a bit of a rough distraction to one of the records most explosive moments. Honeymoon Ashtray is another lyrical highlight that sees Jeff reaching into his strained vocals more than once across the song. Unfortunately the instrumental territory here is more than covered ground across the record and Jeff's discography. Picking this instrumental out of a line-up of Jeff tracks would be nearly impossible, not to mention the song delivers some underwritten icing on the cake with its "Woo, Hoo" vocal refrain that drags the ending of the song out.
The record isn't immune to a dud or two either starting with The Beauty Of Breathing. This instrumental is flat out pop rock and while I think the songwriting here is fundamentally solid the gruff and fiery vocal delivery do not fit at all with the lyrics of this instrumental. I much prefer the live version of this song that appears on the live album Jeff released last year. BNB is probably my least favorite track on the album as the stop and start vocals do almost nothing for me and some of the lyrical moments take a nosedive into cringey territory. There are individual moments on the song that I think are decent but the "Ayy, ayy, ayy" refrain the track tries to pull off as a hook is a total flop.
All in all No Dream is yet another effective release in a line of fiery lo-fi skate-punk albums that doesn't skimp on lyrical details. In fact I would go as far as to say as catchy and punchy as the instrumentals are on this record the highlights are by far Jeff's lyrics. His attitude is infectious and his mentality seeps into every moment of every song across the record. Even if his dejected nihilism isn't your way of thinking it is impossible to deny that Jeff isn't delivering one solid and well supported point after another, which is difficult to do in a record that moves so fast and demands you pay attention. Even though not every moment is perfect there is more than enough witty wordplay, raw energy and impactful songwriting across this album for me to comfortably label it as one of the can't miss indie rock and punk rock records of 2020. 8/10
Album Cover Review by Tyler Judson: This cover is cool! I like the psychedelic vibes it gives off and the colors make it seem more thought out than the regular rainbow color palette that you see in imagery like this. The illustration is executed well and I like how it makes layers in the composition with the drips going over the test at the bottom.I wish the letters at the top would also mimic this but it's still successful without it. 7/10
For more indie rock check out my review of Car Seat Headrest's Making A Door Less Open here
