Release Date: Jul 12, 2019
Genre(s): Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock
Record label: Dead Oceans
Music Critic Score
How the Music Critic Score works
Buy Don't You Think You've Had Enough? from Amazon
Jennifer and Jessica Clavin had a near-cinematic Los Angeles upbringing--daughters of a guitarist who played noise music in the '60s, the two formed a punk band in their garage in the Valley while still in high school. They've run down the West Coast checklist: toying with surf rock, visiting Joshua Tree, playing the Burger Records showcase. On Don't You Think You've Had Enough?, the Clavin sisters remain unafraid to wear their inspirations on their sleeves.
Since their 2013 debut album, Ride Your Heart, Bleached's Jennifer and Jessie Clavin have been cleaning up the rough edges of their punk-pop. On Don't You Think You've Had Enough?, they share how they cleaned up their lives. Their first work as sober artists, the sisters' third album reflects the turning point the Clavins faced after Welcome the Worms.
The third album from the Calvin sisters, Jessie and Jennifer, aka Bleached, may not break any new ground, but it certainly has its fair share of pointed and slightly off-beat, and also very good, pop punk. On the surface, the straightforward rock rhythms are crisply played with an honest raw energy and tight chord progressions. But a deeper dive reveals a slightly more complex sound with bouncy counter-rhythms, playful beats, and surging guitar riffs.
The latest album from Bleached is full of intentions, yet it feels like the band got cold feet when it came to following through. Each track on Don't You Think You've Had Enough? seems to get halfway to its destination before running out of steam. It's clear that Bleached set out to make a record that signifies a new chapter in their lives. Unfortunately, the raw emotion gets watered down with generic rock riffs that make it difficult to distinguish one song from the next. The story becomes more clear in the album's second half ….
Three years on from second LP 'Welcome The Worms', Californians Bleached are stripped back to a duo - sisters Jennifer and Jessie Clavin - and newly-sober. That’s not all that’s changed on the self-exploratory ‘Don’t You Think You’ve Had Enough?’ - where previously they found themselves revelling in a giddy brand of scuzzy punk, this time they've got a tad more polish. The funky strut of lead single 'Hard To Kill' feels like a 2019 take on Blondie, ‘Somebody Dial 911’ boasts a Smiths-like haziness, before the disco funk of ‘Kiss You Goodbye’ strolls in.
is available now