Album Review: Hey, Hey Pioneers by Farewell Continental

In the four albums he's released with Motion City Soundtrack, Justin Pierre has shown a talent for creating pop rock with an earnest emotional punch. Their last album, My Dinosaur Life, featured confessional lyrics that pushed the band to a higher tier than many of the pop punk groups they're lumped with.

This year has seen the release of the first full length album by his other band, Farewell Continental. Though Hey, Hey Pioneers has a fuzzier, crunchier sound than MCS, its songs have the same mix of well crafted hooks and lyrics. Even if Pierre isn't probing as deep into his insecurities this time, nothing sounds false or empty.

One of the album's highlights is his shared vocal duties with Kari Gray. It's a case of the male perspective being enhanced by the female counterpoint. Many of the best songs are a conversation (or argument) between the two. One of the best examples of this is "New Tile Floor" where they dissect a crumbling relationship. On "The Greatest of All Time" they tell a story about a couple separated by war. It involves him not making it back before she moves on, his injury, and reality slipping away. In less talented hands the end result would've been a song loathed by anyone past their teenage years. In theirs, it comes off as immediate and genuine.

Though one could make the criticism the band's sound is too backwards looking, which they address head on with "Radio, Radio: Are You Getting This," I don't know that it's such a bad thing. If you're going to use sounds from the recent past, you could do worse than the Weezer/Pavement era of the nineties.

Given the rushed nature of the group's work, the album doesn't come off as a hurried side project. It sounds like the work of a dedicated band looking to make their mark. Sometimes music can suffer from being overworked. It's why the work you do in your garage can shine brighter than what you produce in a top-line studio. At the same time, no one wants to hear something half-finished. It's a testament to the band's talent that they can walk the tightrope.

At the end of the day, Farewell Continental is delivering better music than many other, more lauded groups. Hey, Hey Pioneers is an album with real resonance. It's worth seeking out.