THE PHOTO ATLAS “No, Not Me, Never”
THE PHOTO ATLAS should be happy it’s 2007 and not 2003 because if it were, there’s no telling how hard it’d be for the band to standout amongst the numerous garage/dance/post-punk bands that were infiltrating radios a few years ago. You know the sound: angular/jangly/raw riffs, danceable rhythms, shouted vocals, and a sprinkle of keyboards here and there with a common influences list that often includes FUGAZI, AT THE DRIVE-IN, and THE POLICE. Originally released by Morning After Records, the hip label of the moment Stolen Transmission picked up this Denver-based band late last year in order to re-issue No, Not Me, Never on a wider scale. With the right kind of exposure, THE PHOTO ATLAS could surely garner the kind of buzzworthy attention their labelmates in THE HORRORS and PERMANENT ME are currently receiving. If there is one thing that dominates No, Not Me, Never it’s the guitars. From the opening chords of “Electric Shock” right down to the final seconds of “Handshake Heart Attack,” it’s the guitars that lead every twist, turn, and boogie. While the band’s vocalist lends a solid performance in his own right, this is a dance-y guitar record at heart, and that’s really all you need to know about THE PHOTO ATLAS. There’s not a minute that goes by throughout the album’s ten songs that couldn’t inspire hip-shaking, head-bobbing, or even The Little Kicks. Comparisons have been made to the likes of THESE ARMS ARE SNAKES, MINUS THE BEAR, THE FAINT, CURSIVE, and numerous other bands, and while THE PHOTO ATLAS aren’t quite doing exactly what those bands are doing, they are very much in the same vein. No, Not Me, Never is like asking for a large pack of angular riffs with a super-sized side of dance beats. If that’s your order, you absolutely can not go wrong with THE PHOTO ATLAS.
Stolen Transmission
