Sometimes You Just Need a Rock n' Roll Record, So Here's Uni Boys' 'Do It All Next Week'
After a string of killer double A-side singles, the LA-based power pop group makes their anticipated Curation Records debut.
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As an eternal cratedigger, I have the severe problem of always looking for that new record that flips pop’s comfortable formula on its head. Combine this with listening to a handful of fresh releases each week, and I often find it all going in one ear and out the other. But sometimes an artist perfects an age-old recipe so well that it serves as a reminder that good ol’ rock n’ roll will always be there for you, and this week its Uni Boys and their sugary riff-filled new album, Do It All Next Week.
Led by the dual guitar and vocals attack of Noah Nash and Reza Matin, with a humming rhythm section in bassist Michael Chipolleti and drummer Artie Fitch, Uni Boys are a time capsule of the late-70s power pop scene with plenty of modern cheekiness to avoid any notion of being a novelty act - think of bands like Milk ‘N’ Cookies, The Nerves, The Producers, or even You’re Gonna Get It!, the second album from Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers.
Even though Uni Boys recorded Do It All Next Week at home with some help from Garageband, the production by Matin is as rich as anything from the bubblegum era it looks to for inspiration. One of the best opening runs of the year, “You Worry About Me,” “Downtown,” “On Your Lovin’ Mind,” and “Long Time No See,” kick things off with a bang, but Uni Boys never slow down for thirty minutes as “Caroline Kills” and “I Wanna Rock You” are latter album highlights. It’s also worth seeking out “Rock ‘n’ Roll Dream,” a song from the earlier “Long Time No See” single that didn’t make the cut.
Curation Records is on a tear this summer, with cosmic country stylings of Sean Thompson’s Weird Ears (read my review here) only coming out a few weeks ago. Now it’s time for another pallet cleanser with Uni Boys’ straightforward power pop stylings.
Do It All Next Week is available now on Curation Records.
Hear songs from Do It All Next Week and so much more on the Good Ass Songs 2022 playlist!