‘Guts & Black Stuff’, the debut full-length from French Exit, is a patchwork quilt of sorts. Its title references a classic Simpsons episode, and a Movielife lyric that will ring a bell with pop-punk fans of a certain age, while its 12 tracks plot a path through ‘Pinkerton’-era Weezer via the ragged guitars of Dillinger Four and enough redemptive singalongs to floor a room full of broken hearts.
The LA-based four piece are remarkably assured, winding together gruff, duelling vocals and gloriously fuzzy leads over melodies that reinforce their promise as potential songwriters of note.
Impossible, When There’s A Fork In The Road, Take It and Defensive Indifference are the sort of pop gems that Rivers Cuomo can’t get a handle on these days, while Dke and Hold Your Breath pick up the pace and land squarely in territory occupied by the Lawrence Arms a decade ago.
Lyrically, French Exit tackle different strands of misery and isolation with honesty and generous helpings of catharsis. After all, why scream into the void when you can scream your lungs out at a punk show?
‘Guts & Black Stuff’ also ranks as another fine entry in It’s Alive Records’ recent canon. Having put out releases by the Copyrights, Dopamines, Crusades, Gateway District and more in the last couple of years, the label has developed a roster that is consistent in both tone and quality. French Exit fit in nicely and have in their possession a debut that deserves to be heard.
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