The Speedways - Just Another Regular Summer

And just like that, The Speedways have come and gone! This band was by design a one-off project. They made an album, played one show, and that was that. But if you're only going to make one album, it ought to be as good as Just Another Regular Summer! The Speedways was Matt Julian from The Breakdowns going for a classic power pop sound. Power pop was certainly a huge influence on The Breakdowns as well. But with The Speedways, Julian laid the glam and punk influences to the side and concentrated purely on the pop. On this album, he plays guitar, bass, and keyboards and performs all of the vocals. His old band mate Dec Burns is along for the ride on drums. Lyrically, this album is full of classic power pop themes like heartbreak, longing, and unrequited love. Basically Just Another Regular Summer is an album for power pop purists, and it's an exceptional one at that.

I have mixed feelings about this being the last Speedways release. On one hand, that's kind of a bummer. But on the other hand, I feel like this is such a perfect power pop album that it would be pointless to try and top it. Julian wasn't trying to reinvent the wheel here. This album is a tip of the cap to the timeless sounds of '70s guitar pop, recalling everyone from 20/20 to Tom Petty to Elvis Costello to the Paul Collins Beat. With his songwriting honed in on tuneful melodies, hook-laden choruses, and poignant lyrics, Julian comes off like someone who was born to create this kind of music. "In Common With You" sounds like a lost AM radio hit from the days of my youth, while "Don't Tell Me" could have come out of the American heartland 40 summers ago. And even though this is a digital release, it has the feel of a vinyl record. The title track and "Reunion In the Rain" conclude their respective "sides" in gut-wrenching, highly dramatic fashion.

Just Another Regular Summer is everything you could want from a classic power pop album. Julian sure knows how to write a catchy tune, but at a deeper level he just "gets" what this type of music is all about. Almost all of us have known heartbreak, and almost all of us have continued to put ourselves in its line of fire. That's part of the human condition, and that's why love songs will never go out of style. I have to chuckle when people dismiss songs about human relationships as "lightweight". Come on, what could be less lightweight? There will always be great worth in music like this, and kudos to The Speedways for carrying it off so splendidly.



-L.R.

https://thespeedways.bandcamp.com/releases