Review: The Young and the Useless

The Young and the Useless
“Self-Titled”
(Thorp Records)

I went down to LA last weekend.  I was hoping I’d run into Kelli Skye, but I’m not even sure if she lives in LA, so I had to admit my chances of just randomly bumping into her were pretty small.  I decided I’d go to the mall, ’cause that’s where all cool kids hang out.  I tried to even further increase my chances by posting up for extended periods at hip stores I figured she’d frequent, like Wet Seal, Dalias, and things of that nature.  I didn’t see her, but I also don’t know what she looks like, so that didn’t help matters either.

What I did get to listen to on my drive down was this new EP from TYATU.  They’re a punk band with a hardcore singer, so they’ve got that mismatch dichotomy going on.  There aren’t gnarly most beats and pounding guitars here.  Instead, TYATU opt for more soulful interludes and even a few melodies scattered in for good measure.  Don’t think these guys are soft though-there’s plenty of punishing action to be had throughout the release.  While many of the vocals remain unintelligible, the lyrics I was able to make out sounded vaguely positive, rather than the nihilism I was expecting.  I always like to be surprised.  Sometimes with flowers.  For Valentines.  Because you know you miss me.