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REMEMBER RIGHT NOW
(VICTORY)
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Like plenty of other hardcore kids gone soft, Chicago’s Spitalfield take their cues from emo mainstays Jimmy Eat World and the Get Up Kids. So despite the mid-level production on their first Victory full-length, they’re full of commercial potential. They’ve already got the songs: the disc’s first single, "I Loved the Way She Said LA," is a brisk, hard-rocking daydream about puppy love gone west. When frontman Mark Rose counts the miles between Illinois and California as a token of his affection, the track even echoes TRL contenders (and fellow Chicago punks) Mest. On the opening "Those Days You Felt Alive," glammy guitar hooks frame Rose’s romantic exasperation: "I think I know but you won’t tell me/I’ve got this figured out and then you/Go and change it." The gritty rhythm section is the sole allusion to the band’s hardcore past; otherwise, heartfelt lyrics, big melodies, and smart arrangements are the rule. Shifting tempos bolster the upbeat sincerity of "Am I Ready," and the closing "Make My Heart Attack" boasts major-league hooks. They reach too far on the cello-driven ballad "In the Same Lifetime," but don’t be surprised if Spitalfield realize their commercial aspirations before long.
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