Cost of Living

What is most inspiring about Cost of Living is, whether they are addressing workers’ rights, saving net neutrality, the white-cis-het hegemony or police brutality, among countless other topics to manage to fit into a 35-minute album, Downtown Boys stay angry, but are never pessimistic.

Her message is crystal clear, as is the rest of Cost Of Living. Downtown Boys is determined to be the kind of band we need right now, delivering the kind of punk that that aims to change the world.

Cost of Living outpaces its predecessor in large because of Downtown Boys’ newfound mastery of dynamics in their performances.

The Trump administration--not to mention the bright production by Fugazi’s Guy Picciotto--has given them a sense of space and melody, something that allows vocalist and lyricist Victoria Ruiz’s righteous proclamations to rise.

Produced by Guy Picciotto of Fugazi in tandem with engineer Greg Norman, Cost of Living is a tougher and leaner effort than Full Communism, with the group's abundant energy even more tightly focused.

Ruiz is an effective and ruthless firecracker who grills her subjects with no remorse, but she’s also welcoming and receptive to those who speak their mind with courage. Along with the rest of the band, they understand that they can only encourage participation and bolster awareness.

Although there’s a clarity and confidence in the slower pace of Lips That Bite and the darker post-punk textures of Somos Chulas (No Somos Pendejas) (translating roughly as 'We’re Elegant/Intelligent (We’re Not Dumb)')--sensing that Downtown Boys are capable of ever greater ferocity, you just want to urge them on even further.

Ruiz's best mode is mocking fury, wielded against Trump, scene exclusivity and the consequences of silence. The leering tone makes an already fearless record genuinely fun. [Sep 2017, p.86]

Cost of Living revels in the gleaming, multi-tracked expanse of a professional recording studio. It’s a richer, fuller sound; the stereo imaging is wider and the saxophone (they’ve stripped down to just one, now played by Joe DeGeorge, who also handles keyboards) has more presence in the mix. The bigger, brighter sound often serves them well.

One disappointment is the less adventurous brass arrangements that now sound more like the band's ironic-but-not-ironic Bruce Springsteen cover from 2016. The smoother edges still don't dull the thrill of loud, angry young people with something to say. [Jul - Aug 2017, p.55]

Now is a perfect time for a band like their’s to prosper, and Cost of Living fulfills the noblest of expectations.

While a few songs interject to maintain the rabid pace of earlier releases (“Because You,” “Somos Chulas (No Somos Pendejas),” “Tonta”), most come through with a mid-tempo energy that might fall flat were it not rejuvenated by dense song forms, disjointed and atonal harmony, and Ruiz’s characteristic snarl.

Produced by Fugazi's Guy Picciotto, the Boys' third album comes with the potent sonic upgrade they deserve.

Their collective relentless energy combined with their individual talents saves their sound from feeling repetitive.