Album: Mellon Collie & the Infinite Radness
Artist: Tokyo Police Club
Label: Dine Alone Records
Release Date: April 8
Grade: B+
Earlier this month Toronto indie rockers Tokyo Police Club teased fans with a scavenger hunt leading up to the announcement of a pair of new EPs. Mellon Collie and the Infinite Radness (Part 1) was released on April 8 and is quoted as having the band’s “"tightest, brightest, and certainly raddest batch of songs to date."
The new EP takes its name from fellow indie-rock band Smashing Pumpkin’s 1995 album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. The second part of the EP will be released later this year and the band has already lined up a slew of tour dates around North America over the summer.
The band first released their new hit single “Not My Girl” back in February and built a lot of hype around the newly released EP. The song is an up-beat pop tune with a catchy chorus and a Beatles-style vibe.
The song carries the feeling after ending a toxic relationship. After dealing with a “cruel” partner that didn’t share the same feelings and how it may leave you what to do with your life after the relationship is over.
Another new song “PCH” reminisces about spending time with a significant other on the romantic shores of the Pacific Coast. This song goes hand in hand with “Not My Girl” as it is another anthem about wishing to date someone and knowing that it will never happen.
Tokyo Police Club needed this new EP. Since their official start in 2006, they’ve put out six studio albums and this will be their seventh. Their last album Forcefield released in 2014, but as the band has matured over the past 10 years since their debut, it has become harder to make music all together.
The group didn’t find the success they wanted with their last album. In an interview they said that the recording process was something they didn’t want to go through again.
This album was recorded over a week-long period in New York City. The band said during a press release that it was a simple project that brought them all together, and was fun to record.
This first half of the EP is truly “rad.” There are some great tunes to rock out to and will provide listeners with a broken heart with something to relate to while feeling down. I give this EP a B+ because it’s great so far, but needs its other half to be fully graded. Despite the incomplete set, these five songs are definitely worth the listen.
Max Kalnitz is the senior arts editor and can be reached at arts@ubspectrum.com
