Released at the start of the summer, the self-titled debut album by Grey Causeway merges the lyrical simplicity and catchy melodies of pop punk with the gritty, minimalist edge of post-punk.
The poppiness emerges most obviously on “I-580,” “Quiet Girl,” and “The Raft,” with tunes one could happily bop along to. On the opposite end of the spectrum is the album’s penultimate track “Sick Day,” which sounds particularly wicked in its entrancing disquietude. (One may wonder if it’s an obviously sarcastic shrug at capitalism but, with such meager lyrical content to work with, listeners must decide on their own.) With years of experience playing in Bay Area bands—including Smokers, The Peechees, Papercuts, and The Jim Yoshii Pile Up—Grey Causeway presents familiar sounds in a riveting new package.
Grey Causeway is just one of several recent releases by Oakland’s Dandy Boy Records. For more excellent local alternative rock, indie pop, and punk, check out their other new releases from the likes of Rhymies, Autos, Whitney’s Playland, Ryli, and The Wind-Ups.
