The Beauty Pill formed in 1999 out of the ashes of the Smart Went Crazy. The D.C.-area musicians are building upon the legacy of important music heralding from our nation’s capitol. After five years, the band has finally released its debut full-length album, The Unsustainable Lifestyle.
The album has been put out by record label, Dischord, the premier source of D.C. talent, which has also helped groups from Minor Threat and Fugazi to Q and Not You and Embrace. The label has been one of the most stable and influential institutions in modern music, acting as a cornerstone of the early ’80s hardcore scene from which Chicago “Emo” and California pop-punk drew great influence.
With previous releases, a heavy cumulus of punk-rock ethos has sometimes clouded production values. With D.I.Y. punk, you don’t always get perfectly planned audio compositions, but Beauty Pill attacks this recording without losing either its attitude or missing a chance to pounce upon a melody.
Chad Clark and Rachel Burke share vocal responsibilities, and their interplay progresses the band’s tone past definable rock-genre restrictions. From sleepy punk ditties to impeccably orchestrated instrumentation, The Unsustainable Lifestyle bleeds raw plight in the face of overwhelming politics and American consumerism.
The album opens with the swirling stereo build up of “Goodnight for Real.” The seemingly buoyant narration leads the listener into a realm of confusion. Clark digs his teeth into the role of punk-band-as-savior, singing, “They don’t want to save your life they just want to distract you for a while.” The breathless refrain of “There’s only so much oxygen left in the room” drops away in a haunting refrain.
“A Love Called Will You Come Visit Me In Prison” is a stripped down moog and acoustic guitar track that dives into broken-off relationships in a Liz Phair (early on in her career) style. Burke’s lyrics let broken promises bounce off bare prison cinderblock in an attempt to grasp her lover’s unfair exit from her life. She sings, “Sayonara or staying true? / Posting bail or bailing out? / Will you let me down?” In the end her fate is as sealed as the imagined prison around her.
“Won’t You Be Mine” spreads the Beauty Pill’s sound even further, combining roadhouse blues and hip-hop into an unforeseeable mash-up masterpiece, although the track does momentarily kill the album’s flow. But even the slave-driver references come off fresh, with biting hostility. This is punk attitude in a new defining moment.
Other tracks like the My Bloody Valentine-influenced “Such Large Portions!” and the sweeping, beautiful indie romp about high school angst and drug experimentation “Nancy Medley, Girl Genius, Age 15 (“There were drugs on a shelf and I couldn’t help myself / Got freaked out by your scene so I altered my chemistry”) add depth to the album.
But for every poignant line on the album there are a few that just can’t settle correctly. “Quote Devout Unquote” drags on and “Drive Down the Coast” falters melodically at times.
But overall, the Beauty Pill have released a strong debut that jumps genres (although sometimes a little too abruptly) in unique ways and furthers Dischord’s mission statement of documenting the eclectic scene around Washington D.C. The Beauty Pill will kick into a supporting tour and show up in Wisconsin in late April.
Grade: B
