Artist: The Junior Varsity
Album: Wide Eyed
Label: Victory Records
Tracks: 11
Length: 41:08
Review By: Christopher Thomas!

It’s 2005, and here’s what’s up in “underground” music (and I use that term semi-facetiously): screaming and whining.  But if you wade far enough through the swamp of festering unoriginality, you’ll find a secluded oasis of talent.  The Junior Varsity lives in this tiny haven, and they will not scream or whine.  They will play their guitars and sing sweetly to you, and you will remember a time when this is what bands did, this singing and playing.  And you will be happy.

I saw the Junior Varsity sometime last year in the basement of a church at my college.  They were not advertised on the fliers, and only a handful of people stuck around to watch them perform.  They played hard, and they had a good time, and as I watched I thought to myself, “Wow, these guys totally don’t suck.”  A year later I am happy to say that I was right.  Now on Victory Records – one of the factories responsible for pumping more than its fair share of sludge into the swamp – the Junior Varsity are able to share their catchy melodic rock with more than a handful of people.

The first couple of tracks are easily the most accessible and pop-friendly of the bunch, but they are far from the best songs on the record.  It is only a few tracks in that we see the Junior Varsity for what they really are: interesting.  This is best exemplified by their use of odd time signatures and entwining guitar parts.  The Junior Varsity is one heck of a catchy band, casually stepping past the problems that changing time signatures can often cause.  Each song is entirely singalong-able, and the attitude of the band is wholly earnest.  Musically and lyrically the album is reminiscent of Further Seems Forever’s The Moon is Down record, Hey Mercedes' Everynight Fireworks and Mock Orange’s Nines and Sixes – fine company in which to find oneself.

The artwork is also excellent.  Very colorful and visually interesting and not like everything else out there.  And guess what.  There is not a single picture of a beautiful girl looking really forlorn or someone bleeding or a heart being ripped out of someone's chest.  Wow!  It really can be done!

The one thing that really hurts this record and keeps it from being truly great is an inexplicable lack of energy.  The band employs a great dynamic range, moving from soft to loud, hitting all points in between, and yet there is very little emotional energy.  The whole of Wide Eyed is a journey, but one that feels more like reading a book than listening to a rock record.  It’s not boring, but something is definitely missing.