Old School Dropouts

The Connells first came to my attention years and years ago, probably freshman year of college when I got hold of Fun And Games which is so full of hook filled guitar pop that I thought my head would explode. You must understand that at this stage in my life I worshipped at the alter of REM, Hoodoo Gurus, 10,000 Maniacs, so the Connells just fit right in. Well here we are years later and I still very much have a soft spot for the boys from North Carolina. I've seen them live many times, bought all their albums on whatever format was "it" at the time (I still have my "One Simple Word" cassette), and still think that their material has stood the test of time. Songs like "Get A Gun," "Fun & Games," "New Boy," "Slackjawed," are just plain good. The last release they put out was Old School Dropouts in 2001. That album has its moments certainly but isn't as consistent as much of their past catalog. The Connells are another one of those bands that labored on the far edge of fame, getting lots of college radio play, touring relentlessly and eventually burning out. They did have a minor radio hit with the song "'74-'75" which I actually heard last summer, but then again I was in North Carolina at the time. I still listen to their "New Boy" EP (which has a nice acoustic version of both "Fun & Games" and "New Boy" as well as a couple of excellent unreleased tracks) from time to time and am never dissappointed, I just love the line, "You said new boy get down on your knees, I said I'm trying I'm trying...". I'm a sucker for that stuff.

I really wanted to post "New Boy" but in a hurry to get out the house this AM, didn't grab the frickin' CD. Instead I give you:

Slackjawed