Mock Orange

Item: First EP
Author: BW Diederich

First EP

(2002)

Reviewed by BW Diederich

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Label Dead Droid RecordsDecapolisFebruary 2003

emo indie rock psychedelic rock

Mock Orange have been around since 1998. Despite the title, "First EP" this is, indeed, not their first EP. They've released a couple full lengths, some splits with other bands, and been on at least a couple comps. This new ep though is out on Dead Droid Records, whose website is down, hence no picture of the cover.

Emo is weird. It's just true, a fact of life, that emo, as a genre, has had a weird life. In recent times we've seen a good number of bands who were once sort of unabashedly emo expanding their palate a bit to include either instrumental wankery or classic rock-isms. At least those are the two sort of cliché emo moves I've seen most often.

Thankfully the first paragraph has literally nothing to do with Mock Orange, they don't really do either. I'll freely admit I'm not familiar with this band's earlier output. The track I have heard of pre "First EP" material was good, Braid influenced indie rock of the rhythmically intricate emo sort. Braid was and still is a band I love and respect despite any stigmas that may be attached. So I was expecting something of the same sort from this five song ep. Not so much what I got though.

Mock Orange have grown up it would seem, not that the music they made before was in any tangible way immature, but this stuff is much more refined, more far reaching, and to be a bit blunt I guess, less straightforwardly emo. The biggest change from the little contact I'd had with them before is this almost psychedelic feel. Tons of swirly guitars and Ryan Grisham's vocals are pretty impressive. The closest comparison is Enigk I guess, but take away Enigk's more whiney moments and you have Grisham.

Musically there's only one track that screams Sunny Day, the rest are an interesting mix of slight psychedelia paired with Mock Orange's impeccable hooks. There's really not much to fault here. I'm not saying this record breaks new ground, but it does offer something rare these days, classic pop songs not afraid to have a hook, but also never falling into sugary sweetness. They play plain old fashioned rock songs with strong pop sensibilities. A great introduction to what seems to be a new stage in the life of this band.

B-