Goodbye Killer

The eclecticism is jarring--especially on an album that's only 32 minutes long--but the songs are frequently superb

Pernice rarely does things in half-measures, and accordingly, the songs here glow with quiet inspiration.

This music sometimes feels spontaneous and casual, but the craft of Joe Pernice's songwriting remains as literate and melodically absorbing as anyone working in indie pop today, and Goodbye, Killer confirms he and his collaborators haven't lost their touch, and have even gained a bit or edgy nerve along the way.

A compelling mixture of pop and alt-country, this veneer suggests Tom Petty without the anthemic hubris or Buck Owens without the hokier honky-tonk.

The only thing Goodbye, Killer suffers from is a slight lack in variety and a somewhat poor album pacing. But there are the pop rock songs and there are the alternative folk country songs, and they're all done to perfection.

With such stylistic diversity, and with Pernice's word-smithing as intricate and brilliant as ever (even if occasionally coming across as too clever by half), the Pernice Brothers have once again delivered some of the most intelligent and irresistibly hooky pop music around.

These pop songs all work well--the melodies are tight, the playing energetic, the lyrics both smart and emotive. In short, it's another solid Pernice Brothers record.

Like his book, which settled on a downcast but hopeful note, Goodbye, Killer succeeds not because Joe Pernice is a real-life loser, but because the man knows how to tap into the moments where we all feel like losers--the broken half-smiles and the stare-at-your-shoe embarrassments--when redemption seems a bit too far of a reach, and you just want to convince another human that you aren't bullshitting them.

To be fair, a subpar release from Joe Pernice is better than most artists' masterworks. However, compared with Pernice's previous efforts, Goodbye, Killer feels somewhat thin.

A record that's easier to admire than to love. [Jul 2010, p.117]

Sometimes the tight budgets results in a flmisy sound and, for all their strengths, they still feel more like a hobby band than an obsession. But there's much to savour here. [Aug 2010, p.124]

The guy knows how to make records you want to love. What's missing here, though, is that arrow through the heart moment where admiration and affection turns into adoration.