OLYMPIA 'Emergencies' (Equal Vision) RATING: 6/10 Buy now

By JEFF MAKI

For those who may not be familiar, Equal Vision's Olympia aren't exactly metal. But we all need to branch out here and there, right? The Washington, D.C., based band plays hard rock with a punk edge, almost grungy at times. Featuring former members of Fairweather and Phil Williams, former vocalist of Brand New Disaster, Olympia's straightforward approach is somewhat of a welcome sound in a climate of gimmicks, labels and dozens of subgenres in rock music. Think if Bad Religion were to play more of a hard rock style instead of punk. The Foo Fighters also come to mind.

Songs like “Chorus! Chorus! Chorus!” and “Olympia is a Motherfucker” are aggressive enough that they won't garner any FM radio play and have enough of an edge to appeal to the punk rock/skater crowd. On the other hand, the title track starts out dreadfully and doesn't stray much from its soft melancholy sound. This song clearly does not rock. Thankfully, the record picks back up with the punk attitude of “Even Rome Had Sewers.” And that brings me to a point: I don't get some of these song titles here (see “This Ship Ain't Gonna Sink Itself” and "Who's Bad Party Time”) Is this really necessary? So many bands are doing this these days, having song names that are practically sentences. Whether it's to be weird or just the “in” thing, I am at a loss. Speaking of “Who's Bad Party Time,” the song contains only a guitar riff and vocals, sounding like a mix of Bush's “Glycerine” and something by U2. “M-80,” one of the strongest songs, is an up-tempo punk rocker you would hear in the background at the X Games.

There are enough hooks here to snag any fish, and Olympia walks a fine line between the underground and radio. A band like this could gain wide popularity given a chance in the right musical outlets and catered to the right crowd. The band set out to create a rock album and that they did. But now what? I'm just not sure who this will appeal to most.