If you miss Bowling for Soup or Smile Smile, today is your day, because the best of both worlds, People On Vacation, has finally released their sophomore album, The Chronicles of Tim Powers.
People On Vacation is a dynamic duo made up of Jaret Reddick, lead vocalist of Bowling for Soup, and Ryan Hamilton of Smile Smile. The two have blended the styles of their former outfits to create a pop punk/indie sound that’s quite unlike anything else. The Chronicles of Tim Powers is their second full-length album after The Summer and the Fall in 2012. The recording of the album was fully funded by fans through PledgeMusic and was named by fan Tim Powers.
There’s so much about this album that’s so good. The blend of styles is absolutely perfect, with Reddick and Hamilton somehow managing to find harmony in the mix of acoustic indie and pop punk. The vocals are great on both of their parts, and it’s musically beautiful. The album also covers just about every emotion by ranging from heartbreakingly sad to catchy, uplifting, and optimistic. The tracks are cohesive through these emotions and styles, which is a triumph in and of itself. Highlights include the catchy pop rock-infused “You May Not Believe in God”, punk influenced “Don’t Ask the Question”, and the emotionally charged closer, “Journey to the End”. There’s an overall personal and truthful quality to this album that makes it seriously likable. There aren’t enough positive adjectives in my vocabulary to commend this album.
You can stream The Chronicles of Tim Powers on Spotify or purchase it from iTunes, Amazon, or from Bandwear.com.
– Erin Walker
