Melbourne rockers
the Smith Street Band withdrew to the wilds of Forrest, Victoria to record their third LP,
Throw Me in the River. Working in a rustic cabin with American producer
Jeff Rosenstock (
Bomb the Music Industry!), the band fine-tuned their aggressive, folk-inflected pop-punk sound, emerging not with an intimate set, but rather something expansive and occasionally epic. With its sparkling pianos and strings, "Calgary Girls" strives for
Springsteen-ian mountain vistas, and "Get High, See No One" alternates between frenetic and thunderous.
Throw Me in the River feels less like a band looking inward and more like one fighting like hell to break free. It's another visceral and solid effort from this amped-up, literate combo. [
Throw Me in the River was also released on LP.] ~ Timothy Monger