The Subjunctives are a three-piece pop punk band from Seattle who formed in 2017. Don’t let their relatively short time as a band deceive you though, as the band is formed of Jeff Mangalin – who is the guitarist for Seattle power pop punks Four Lights – on bass, Ean Hernandez – a founding member of 90s pop punk legends Sicko (who have recently released a sort of best of album on Red Scare) – on guitar and Matt Coleman – who previously played a Baroque-pop style in Heather Edgley’s band. So, these are well practiced musicians but can they write great pop punk songs? Obviously I know the answer is yes because I reviewed their first self-titled EP back in January this year, but how does the full-length album that they’ve just released fare? A 16-track full-length album, at that. Let’s find out…
The album opens just as I expected and wanted it to – with a short, snappy and kind of carefree song. Guinivere, In Raybans And Chucks is a song about being a not particularly cool dad as well as husband to an awesome Guinivere, or Helen, character. The lyrics are kept simple with lines like ‘I have two girls they are so cute, In their matching pink tu tus.’ but that’s part of the joy of The Subjunctives. Before we know it, we’re onto the second track. The pounding drums and chugging guitars welcome us into At The Kraken. The Kraken is ‘Seattle’s number one pirate themed punk rock dive bar’ and although I’m sure that many people listening to this song, myself included of course, won’t have been to The Kraken, I reckon most of us can relate to having our own favourite dive bar type venue. For that reason alone, this is a brilliant track but it also features some brilliant harmonies that really add another layer to The Subjunctives sound. This is a band that are clearly masters of succinct, catchy songwriting which is definitely apparent from the third song on Sunshine And Rainbows. Spend Your Time is a sweet little love song about how your significant other doesn’t have to spend all their time with you if they don’t want to – ‘If you wanna go, just let me know, You don't have to go, if you don't wanna go.’. The song may not have many words but it more than makes up for that with the trio’s fine musicianship, plus more of those wonderful R.E.M.-esque (you know what I mean if you read my review of The Subjunctives’ EP) harmonies right at the end. Next up we have the first of three songs that also appeared on the aforementioned EP. Pass It On kicks off with pounding drums and fast-paced guitar work plus a beefy and typically pop punk sounding bassline. This is another song that keeps things simple lyrically with most of the chorus being repetitions of ‘Pass it on’. It’s not quite as straightforward as that sounds however, with the band once again displaying their skill with harmonies – they’ll no doubt have the listener singing along and adding their own harmonies too.
Friday slows things down a little bit (at least by this band’s standards) for a mid-tempo and retrospective number. The song is about enjoying cosy Friday nights in – watching David Attenborough no less – with your loved one rather than always going out to a bar or a show. Despite being a bit younger than the guys in The Subjunctives, this is a feeling that I can relate to – not every Friday night but sometimes it’s nice to have a night in. Speaking of songs I can relate to, track number six is Introverted Girl. This is another song that featured on the EP – as well as on the CPRW fifth birthday comp that we released back in June – and, as I mentioned in my review of the EP, I can wholeheartedly relate to being an introverted girl. Speaking to Ean after I wrote that review, he told me that the song is about his daughter. This is a kick-ass song with a lovely sentiment. Appropriately, the next song is also about being a parent (something, unlike being an introvert, that I cannot relate to). Hey Dad feels similar to Guinivere, In Raybans And Chucks with its down-to-earth home-life nature, as Ean sings about getting his kid(s) chicken mcnuggets and feeding the cat at 5am. The musical delivery is suitably loud, lively and oh so catchy yet again. Eighth song, Rotate, is the third and final song to have previously appeared on the EP. It’s another brilliant song however so I don’t mind one bit about hearing it again in this setting. Opening with a infectious guitar riff before the rest of the band chime in, this is another fine example of fast-paced pop punk. Rotate is a love song of sorts but not perhaps as obviously as, for example, Spend Your Time. Here, the band talk of the earth’s rotation and time zones to reflect on feelings for someone. ‘Did you look back, Across the ocean, the mountains and the sea? 8 more hours will rotate you back around the world to me.’
Waste My Time sees The Subjunctives getting a little angry as they sing of someone wasting their time with their not very well thought through statements and comebacks. The sort of person who thrives on ‘fake news’ and false information – or at least that’s the sort of person I’m conjuring up in my head. It’s not just the lyrics that feel angry here, the instruments seems to be being played that little bit more forcefully – the rhythm section in particular. The tenth song of Sunshine And Rainbows is called Get Some Sleep. This song took me by surprise the first time I listened to the album as it sounds completely different to all of the songs we’ve heard so far. Not only has the lead vocalist changed but so has the musical style. It’s got a bit of a 90s alternative rock vibe to it and feels much darker in tone than the very much pop punk-sounding earlier tracks. Get Some Sleep – which is fine advice, I should add – even features a short almost grungey guitar solo. My Girl returns to the tried and tested song about your awesome significant other format although its delivery is a little different to the typical catchy pop punk that we’ve come to know as The Subjunctives sound. It’s still short and fast – in fact, this is the shortest song on the album at 58 seconds – but everything feels even more snappy. That certainly isn’t a bad thing however – it’s great to hear variety in a 16 track pop punk album! One More Year is not a song that immediately caught my attention when listening to Sunshine And Rainbows but, in reading the lyrics and attempting to find words to write about it, I have grown quite fond of the song. One More Year is about getting older and trying to find the positives in your life each day, such as sunshine (and rainbows), even if you have things like your back is starting to ache and your forgetfulness to worry about. A great message and a great song.
The Fastbacks Are The Greatest Band in History (So Fuck You) tells the tale of discovering a band, in this case Seattle’s The Fastbacks, as a young adult and how that can change your life. I must admit that I am not familiar with The Fastbacks but that doesn’t mean that I don’t connect with this song. The song is not really just about The Fastbacks but about the power of punk rock as a whole. Punk rock is the best and I guess I should listen to The Fastbacks… but first, we have three more songs of this album! Headed East Again feels like a song to be blasted out of your car speakers as you embark upon a road trip, or perhaps commence a tour if you’re The Subjunctives. This may, of course, be partly due to the song’s name but who doesn’t want to play decent tunes, nice and loud, as you embark on a car journey. The penultimate song of Sunshine And Rainbows is titled My E String. Opening with just bass before the rest of the instruments and vocals come in, My E String is, unsurprisingly, about the E String of a guitar. Particularly how it ends up going out of tune a lot when playing live and how that can make you feel like you’ve screwed up and everyone is staring at you. Sure it’s an unusual topic for a song but, delivered in The Subjunctives’ signature catchy pop punk sound, it’s sure to get your head nodding along. I also rather liked the line ‘A room full of strangers becomes a room full of friends.’ – the perfect description of the punk scene. Sunshine And Rainbows ends with Dumbass and another dose of angry venting – it’s necessary sometimes, isn’t it? This time the anger is about a job or, perhaps more specifically, a boss who acts like they own you – ‘I’m working for you, But you don’t own me, dumbass.’ There’s just the right amount of power behind the instruments and venom in the vocals to successfully deliver the message and I hope the boss in question hears the song one day. The ending feels a little abrupt when it comes but, if you don’t get distracted and change to listening to something else, you will be treated to a surprise, somewhat self-deprecating, 40 second acoustic song at the end of the album. I’m not usually a fan of final songs featuring a hidden track after a section of silence but, perhaps because it’s so stripped, back I quite like it.
Phew! Sunshine And Rainbows might be only 34 minutes long but a 16 (or 17, if you count the bonus song) track album is quite the challenge to review when I’m used to albums having just 10 songs to write about – and at CPRW we do, ideally, like to make a point of talking about each and every song on a release. Thankfully The Subjunctives have packed plenty of variety into Sunshine And Rainbows and delivered a fine example of modern pop punk.
Sunshine And Rainbows was released on November 22nd and you can buy physical copies (CD and vinyl) from Top Drawer Records as well as streaming the album in the usual places. So, what are you waiting for? Go and check it out!
You can like The Subjunctives on Facebook here.
This album review was written by Emma Prew.
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