Humans strive for perfection in everything they do. Be it in academics, athletics, or life in general, there is an underlying push to perfection that lies within a person, trying to drive them to greatness. After perfection is achieved, the race to get back to it begins.
With their sophomore release “Chasing Hamburg,” Polar Bear Club addresses the concept of returning to perfection.
And the band comes pretty close.
The album reads pretty similar to their outstanding 2008 full-length debut “Sometimes Things Just Disappear” with an opening song hook to reel in the listener, solid middle songs, and an epic closer. Emotional lyrics address topics such as losing friends, home, and the state of today’s society.
The Rochester/Syracuse, NY-based band hits the ground running, chasing their dreams, with the opening track “See The Wind.” Stadt’s hoarse cries open the song and album before the rhythm section lays down a heavy headbanging riff. Stadt provides a sense of desperation and longing present throughout the album with the lyrics “All we live for is now or never.”
“See The Wind” is followed by the best song on the album, “Living Saints.” The beginning of the song builds the anticipation before the song explodes. The band demonstrates their lyrical prowess with lines such as “It’s been killing me for weeks / A garden weed that cracks concrete” and “Growing up isn’t moving on.” This song captivates and will easily make year-end best lists.
Following “Living Saints” is arguably the second best song on the album, “Boxes.” A harangue against bands of today that try to make themselves seem to be above the current happenings in the world, above and beyond the current trends in the society. The culmination of the song hits at the chorus of “We seek relation and you degrade.” Combined with “Living Saints,” the crux of the album is formed.
The momentum buildup from “Boxes” and “Living Saints” is only able to sustain “Chasing Hamburg” for so long. The subsequent tracks “Take Me To The Town,” “Drifting Thing,” and “Light of Local Eyes” decrease in quality, although “Drifting Thing” switches up the pace as a love song. The low point of the album hits at track seven, with “Song to Persona.” At this point of the album, the sound becomes homogenized below thrashing guitars and screaming vocals.
The only thing that saves the album at this point is the final trio of songs. Starting with “The Old Fisher Burial Ground,” this seizes attention with an intro guitar riff and meshes into the verse and picks up the album’s pace.
The next track, “One Hit Back” paints a picture much like that of “Boxes,” but instead of elitists, it trails against Internet message boards. The most anticipated part of this album was the closer and title track, “Chasing Hamburg.” On the album “Sometimes Things Just Disappear,” the epic “Convinced I’m Wrong” closed out the album on one of the most moving emotional notes ever, leaving me wondering how “Chasing Hamburg” would live up to this.
While it does not quite live up to “Convinced I’m Wrong,” “Chasing Hamburg” does provide the feel that the band embarks on the constant want of perfection every time out.
Polar Bear Club is an underground band that shouldn’t be underground for much longer. Check this album out and support this band, as they are one of the easiest bands to get into. And “Chasing Hamburg” is a great starting point.
This album earns a four out of five for its great tracks and moving lyrics that live way up to expectations.
Daniel Gallen can be reached for comment at [email protected].