album: Thank Goodness
artist: Kill Vargas
genre: rock & roll
release date: December 18, 2020
star rating: three out of five

review by Nathan Carpenter

This album has a strong punk rock vibe that sounds both contemporary and nostalgic to me. I’m not a huge fan of the vocals – there’s not enough breath support. While the instruments are in time with each other, the musical movements are predictable. I can only tolerate punk power chords for so long.

The constant, forceful strumming of the distorted guitar wore on me the first half of the album. “Better Off” has a guitar solo/interlude, but I wouldn’t describe it as skillful. The second half of the album impressed me more than the first. “Love and Misery” impressed me with its instrumental drop and high levels of reverb as the chorus returns at the end of the song. “Alone on the Dancefloor” I would give a four out of five. I like how the dynamics change between loud and quiet. The guitar and drums are syncopated in a way that makes me want to keep listening. The chorus of this tune is catchy. “American Nightmare” has an appealing pre-chorus drop. The anthemic bridge of “I’m not as cool as I try to be. I’m not the person I’d like to be,” is interesting.

I was pleased that the lyrics are appropriate and convey the sense of wrestling between hopefulness and desperation that we musicians are prone to find ourselves in. I recommend this to fans of alternative punk rock, though I don’t know if it will find a wide audience outside of that subgenre. I don’t regret listening to it, and I’m always happy to see local artists creating new music that is meaningful.