The Thermals Issue #39

Now We Can See

By Katy Henriksen
Published: March 1st, 2009 | 3:54pm

The Thermals have an uncanny gift for churning out hyper-catchy, lo-fi punk anthems and they’ve done it again on Now We Can See. Still fuzzy and distorted, the Portland-based three piece’s fourth full-length release (and Kill Rock Stars debut), has a pristine polish that longtime Thermals fans might find off-putting. The band itself has deemed the sound “post-power-pop.” In other words, the raw prowess of earlier recordings has been harnessed and sculpted into a more finely wrought and calculated explosion of power chords, reverb, and addictive bass lines.

The cleaner, sparser arrangements are still hard-hitting and mostly fast, although there are slower power ballad moments as in “At the Bottom Of the Sea,” which begins as a rather tranquil down-tempo track that builds to a sonic reverby arc and ends with pure noise. Here the post-power-pop approach works. Another slower track, “Liquid In, Liquid Out,” resembles a Green Day song too closely, with lead singer Hutch Harris sounding oddly like Billie Joe Armstrong. The danger in this polished approach is that sometimes the repetition becomes so pronounced that the effect is monotonous rather than catchy.

The best moments remain in shout-out euphoric choruses, as in the title track and “How We Fade.” With these tracks, the more controlled fuzz and noise help to further pronounce the triumphant urgency that has become the trademark of the Thermals’ sound.