Downtown Boys
Cost Of Living
(2017)
Downtown Boys began by combining revolutionary ideals with boundless energy and contagious, inclusive fun, and their resolve has only strengthened as their sound and audience have grown. "Cost of Living" is their third full-length, following a self-released 2012 debut and 2015’s "Full Communism" on Don Giovanni Records. They recorded it with Guy Picciotto (Fugazi; producer of Blonde Redhead, The Gossip), one of indie-rock's most mythological figures, in the producer’s chair. Picciotto fostered the band's improvisational urges while pulling the root of their music to the forefront: unflinching choruses, fearlessly confrontational vocals, and the sense that each song will incite the room into action, sending bodies into motion that were previously thought to have atrophied. Album-opener "A Wall" rides the feel-good power that drove so many tunes by The Clash and Wire as it calls out the idea that a wall could ever succeed in snuffing the humanity and spirit of those it's designed to crush. Compared to previous efforts, Downtown Boys have shifted from a once-meaty brass section to the subtler melodic accompaniment of keyboards and a saxophone, coloring their anthems with warm, bright tones while singer/lyricist Victoria Ruiz spits out her frustrations and passions. Some might say it shows a sense of maturity, as Downtown Boys have undoubtedly smoothed down some of their earlier edges, but there is no compromise to their righteous assault and captivating presence.
01. A Wall [4:03]
02. I'm Enough (I Want More) [3:02]
03. Somos Chulas (No Somos Pendejas) [3:23]
04. Promissory Note [3:40]
05. Because You [3:27]
06. Violent Complicity [3:16]
07. It Can't Wait [1:59]
08. Tonta [1:53]
09. Heroes (Interlude) [0:51]
10. Lips That Bite [4:05]
11. Clara Rancia [3:34
12. Bulletproof (Outro) [1:08]
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