Soothing Sundowner songs seem succulent

By Eric Jaen
Collegian Editor
March 28, 2007

For the past few years Chris McCaughan, guitarist and vocalist for Chicago punk trio The Lawrence Arms, has been writing songs for a new acoustic solo project whilst his fellow band mates dabbled with their own part-time ventures, a la The Falcon. Amid the sporadic intimate performances around town, four demo songs were soon posted via his MySpace profile that were met with a warm response from Lawrence Arms loyalists. As a result of the numerous requests from superfans across the World Wide Web, McCaughan enlisted the help of his friends, and quickly compiled what may very well be considered some of his best work to date for his project Sundowner. The end result, the debut album Four One Five Two on Red Scare, features 12 tracks of musical deliciousness.

Four One Five Two opens with the upbeat track entitled “Steal Your Words,” followed by “This War Is Noise,” which is one of the four rerecorded demo tracks to appear on the album. Immediately, those who have gotten the chance to hear the original demo will notice the impact and depth his hired guns bring to these songs. Fellow Lawrence Arms accomplice, Neil “Tennessee” Hennessy, delivers some low-end magic on the acoustic bass, while Jenny Choi’s cello arrangements and backing vocals compliment McCaughan’s sweet melodies perfectly.

Songs such as “Audio Geography” and “Jackson Underground” best showcase his soothing voice and will become immediate fan favorites. Listeners can feel the intimacy and emotion in McCaughan’s words as he takes on the role of a storyteller, such as in the track “Endless Miles” which contains the lines: “Today I’m in love with everything /Tomorrow who knows what the day will bring/I could ride this train all day/Ain’t got nothing but tracks ahead of me.”

Combining a unique blend of beauty and melancholy, the song “Your Self Portrait” tugs on the right heartstrings as it contains one of the most emotional parts of the album. Its exceptional string arrangements add more meat to an otherwise fairly standard song. Furthermore, hearing Choi accompany McCaughan as he sings, “I feel nothing/I want nothing/I am nothing,” may inspire one to consider changing his or her AIM away message.

The highlight of the album is without a doubt “Midsummer Classic.” Here, McCaughan adopts a deeper vocal style than usual as he sings over the most punk rock instrument of them all, the ukulele. The lyrics further add to the solemn, dream-like aura created by these elements as he sings, “I log the longest miles alone at night inside my room/Where all directions lead right back to me/All my ambitions swim like driftwood through my dark sea of sleep.”

As an added bonus for any diehard fan, Four One Five Two includes two stripped down and reworked Lawrence Arms tracks, “Boatless Booze Cruise,” off of Apathy and Exhaustion, and “One Hundred Resolutions,” featured on Cocktails and Dreams. McCaughan’s rendition of “Boatless Booze Cruise” provides listeners with a straightforward take on a Brendan Kelly classic, while the latter shows off his ability to turn a face melting punk rock jam into a simplified ballad that fits flawlessly onto this record.

One of McCaughan’s biggest strengths has always been his knack for writing the prettier, sometimes poetic tunes for The Lawrence Arms to compliment the gritty, in your face punk rock onslaught provided by his counterparts. Naturally his talents translate well acoustically. Unfortunately, this proves to be Sundowner’s one downfall, as it may leave listeners wondering how well tracks such as “The Sea Of Lights” or “Cold White North” would have faired sped up with a full band at the helm.

Those familiar with McCaughan’s work with The Lawrence Arms should already know what to expect with Sundowner. Fans who felt that Oh! Calcutta! severely lacked in the McCaughan department will get a brontosaurus-sized fill with Four One Five Two. However, one does not necessarily have to be familiar with his main squeeze to enjoy and appreciate the solid musicianship and infectious melody put into this album. Fans of folk, indie, emo and pretty acoustic tunes in general will find Sundowner dominating their last.fm charts in no time.

jaene1@lasalle.edu