As every parent and guidance counselor knows, there's good attention and there's bad attention. The blue- and green-striped Muppet fur covering copies of Schizophrenology suggests that the North Carolina band The Majestic Twelve might not have picked up on the difference. Fortunately, the group doesn't squander the attention once it's got it. On "Break It and Breathe," The Majestic Twelve filters an entire decade's worth of what was once called "college rock," from Devo to Husker Du to Midnight Oil, into a little more than three and a half minutes.
Without indulging in any substantial degree of sonic nostalgia — the production is, above all else, thoroughly up to date — the band digs deep to isolate the sense of dislocation and tension that practically defined the post-punk era. It's all released in one colossal rush during the chorus, when everything about the song (the electric guitars, the drums, the vocals, the confusion and loss of the lyric) locks in and unloads all at once.
Listen to yesterday's 'Song of the Day.'
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