Fourth of July – Fourth of July On the Plains Reviewed by Witz

Midwestern Indie-Pop. Bright, catchy rock with a hint of country, this Lawrence, Kansas band gets your head bobbing and your feet tapping. Brendan Hangauer writes all the songs and leads the group, talking about all kinds of things, from wondering why he got so drunk to lost love and social observations. Nothing too deep or complicated in this album, but its simplicity and Hangauer’s voice somehow gives an intimacy to the album that grabs you and pulls you in right from the first track. All good and pretty similar.

FCC: 8 Sounds Like: Bright Eyes, Ryan Adams, Matt Prior (of The Getup Kids)

**1. (2:33) Very catchy, poppy, twangy electric guitar sound. Very Ryan Adams (when he’s writing upbeat-uptempo songs).
2. (2:52) Poppy narrative complete with “Ooo’s.” Quick and catchy, but apparently about someone breaking into his girlfriend’s house.
**3. (3:36) Somewhat Dylan-esk vocals over the Midwestern pop sound. About his girlfriend with another guy. Some really good lines in this track.
4. (1:22) Duet with female vocals. Short and to the point, catchy little song about drinking last night.
5. (2:51) Slightly slower song-- picks up and a great chorus with a “sing-a-long to it” feel.
*6. (2:35) Casual, meandering rock song, good variation of volume and vocals.
7. (3:05) Rolling rhythm with slide guitar. Good n’ catchy.
**8. (2:31) FCC: (“shit, fuck”) Slightly harder, emo-ish track. Sounds a little like The Getup Kids. Really good track and a good variation from the other songs.
9. (3:03) Slow-tempo ballad about missing the girl. Nothing too interesting.
10. (3:51) Medium paced narrative again about a girl. Some Bright Eyes feel to it.
11. (3:07) Medium paced, same style song as the rest…but with some CLAPPING! Nothing too catchy or interesting to differentiate it from others, but not bad.
12. (3:25) Some starts and stops thrown in, but very redundant for first half. Good change to second part of song, and some good lyrics.


TRACK LISTING NOTE: "Fourth of July aka Track 1" is NOT A TRACK. "2-13" = "1-12"