Posts Tagged ‘A Portrait of An Ugly Man’

REMO DRIVE – ” A Portrait of An Ugly Man “

Posted: July 5, 2020 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Not many bands in the current emo scene have undergone an evolution as swift and drastic as Remo Drive. Their 2017 debut album titled “Greatest Hits” was a fairly standard indie/emo/pop punk record, but the shimmering chords and classic power pop influences of its underrated 2019 follow-up album Natural, Everyday Degradation showed Remo Drive quickly making a leap from their scrappy roots. When that album came out, I compared it to the jump Saves The Day made from Through Being Cool to Stay What You Are, and their just-released third album “A Portrait of an Ugly Man” just might be their In Reverie.

Natural, Everyday Degradation hinted at “classic” sounds, but “Portrait of an Ugly Man” does a deep dive into your parents’ record collection, fusing elements of classic rock, desert rock, and Spaghetti Western scores and coming out with songs that sound wise beyond their years. It’s not just an improvement upon the band’s earlier work because it’s stylistically more “mature” though; as they explore different genres of music, Remo Drive are also getting better at everything they do. They’re better songwriters than ever, and they’re better producers too — like last year’s Natural, Everyday Degradation companion EP Natural, Everyday Extended Play, they produced Portrait themselves. And as much as the “dad rock” influences on this one are clear, Remo Drive still sound like the lively, youthful band that they always were. With the classic rock worship meeting the band’s emo roots, Portrait sounds a little like prime-era Okkervil River, and if you like that band, you should not overlook this one.

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Remo Drive is Erik Paulson and Stephen Paulson

Portrait of an Ugly Man was written and performed by Erik Paulson (Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards, and Aux Percussion), Stephen Paulson (Bass Guitar and Midi Programming), and Sam Becht (Drums). Whitney Smith performed Violin on “If I’ve Ever Looked Too Deep In Thought”

All lyrics by Erik Paulson

Released June 26th, 2020

REMO DRIVE – ” A Portrait of An Ugly Man “

Posted: June 28, 2020 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Bloomington, Minnesota. indie duo Remo Drive have unveiled their third LP A Portrait of An Ugly Man. the first single “Ode to Joy 2,” taken from the album, is an edgy ballad inspired by alcohol, and the accompanying video is the visual representation of that fun drunken Friday night in the backseat of your friend’s car. “The lyrics were inspired by the excess I perceived around me as I transitioned from being a college student into touring full time,” says vocalist Erik Paulson. “Most people who’ve done either can confirm that many social interactions are built around having a drink or smoking weed. Once the honeymoon period of exploration was over for me, I became frustrated with the omnipresence of drugs and alcohol and wanted to write about it.”

The song has the same jaded sound as their last record Natural, Everyday Degradation, which was heavily imbued with nihilism. It seems like the hedonistic days of their debut, Greatest Hits, are already over.