{"id":11895,"date":"2025-01-25T18:14:00","date_gmt":"2025-01-25T18:14:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ipamusic.co.uk\/?p=11895"},"modified":"2025-04-24T18:27:39","modified_gmt":"2025-04-24T17:27:39","slug":"let-me-downs-make-a-perfect-break-up-record-for-album-number-two","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ipamusic.co.uk\/?p=11895","title":{"rendered":"Let Me Downs make a perfect break-up record for album number two"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

ALBUM REVIEW: Let Me Downs – North By Southwest (Felony Records)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Tacoma, Washington trio Let Me Downs<\/strong> are back with a second slice of their blue collar punk rock, and it’s a very welcome return from a band who faced adversity from the start.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They were formed in winter 2019 when Paul Levesque (bass\/vocals) relocated from Phoenix, AZ, to Tacoma, and recruited Garrett \u2018Stump\u2019 Guadiana (drums) and Pat Hall (guitar\/vocals).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It didn’t take long to write their self-released debut album Tacoma Is For Lovers<\/em>, but they hadn’t reckoned on the pandemic getting in the way, which might be why it passed beneath many people’s radar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now they’re back with the follow-up, and hopefully North By Southwest <\/em>will reach a far bigger audience. It certainly deserves to. I’ve seen their sound described as reminiscent of early-2000s pop-punk and emo, but to me it’s closer to Social Distortion and Face To Face – yes, it’s that good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Heart on the sleeve<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

It’s 10 slices on heart-on-the-sleeve punk rock, which bursts into life with Broken Promises,<\/em> a bitter goodbye to an ex-lover which was trailed as a single. You can almost taste the resentment as Hall sings: “You broke down my walls\/Brick by brick\/Gave you all I had\/It didn\u2019t amount to shit.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Boulder <\/em>is another song on the same subject, but this time our man is more reflective, saying: “I miss the way she used to look at me and the smile on her face\/The way it felt. When she looked at me\/ Will I ever feel that way again?”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Home Sweet Home<\/em> is a more upbeat song full of slashing guitars about going home, even if it’s not in the circumstances you might choose. We can all identify with the sentiment “Familiar places, familiar names\/I\u2019m back where I belong,” and for me this is the standout track.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Let Me Downs. Pic by Keith Stein.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

After such an uplifting song, Drowning<\/em>‘s self-reflective coda of “I’ll never be the same\/I\u2019ll never be the same\/I\u2019ll never be the same” is a bit of a comedown, but it’s another strong song. Have you guessed this is a break-up album yet?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A well-chosen cover version of Gin Blossoms’ 1992 hit Hey Jealousy<\/em> follows. Slightly rougher around the edges than the original, it sits comfortably among the very personal material here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The awkwardness of meeting your ex with her new boyfriend is the subject of 3am<\/em>, which has the voices in your head telling you: “I’m not fine with this\/Get over it.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More lost love<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

There’s more reflection about a lost love on My One Regret<\/em>, and our hero is by now convinced the relationship’s failure was his fault: “I\u2019ll be missing you tomorrow and the day after that too\/I have only one regret in my life. That regret is you.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SSDD<\/em> is about – guess what – and sounds a little like The Offspring, while I’ll Be Fine<\/em> is a rare moment of clarity, finding rare positivity in leaving your friends and all you knew behind to live life as one big road trip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Things come to a conclusion with the Rocky-sampling One More Round<\/em>, which is about having one for the road, and given the relationship-heavy nature of the record I’m guessing that doesn’t mean a drink.
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