THE CITY STREETS
These Things Happen
Indie
· Edmonton’s The City Streets is worth the drive.
Quietly released several months ago, The City Streets debut LP These Things Happen is slowly making some noise. As good as any melodic college-rock album that has been made since The Lemonheads’s It’s a Shame about Ray or Buffalo Tom’s Big Red Letter Day, the Edmonton-based three-piece has put together 15 tracks that run the gamut from punk to country without missing a beat.
A mix of melody and garage – even their occasional sloppiness comes off as endearing. The City Streets manage to draw from a wide range of rock sub-genres, bringing something new to every track while still creating a cohesive album. Whether it’s the slow trumpet of "The Queen is Dead" or the guitar heavy "Bankrupt in the Soul," all of the disparate elements fall neatly into place.
These Things Happen loosely follows the story of a non-specific relationship from new love to heartbreak, without ever falling into the sentimental trappings of emo-bands and high school journal keepers. Lead singer and songwriter Rick Reid takes a cue from the likes of Evan Dando and Elvis Costello, creating casually beautiful and honest songs about girls.
Independently produced, These Things Happen may take a little work to find, but these City Streets are worth the drive.
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