Attic Salt - Get Wise (2020)

Three years ago Springfield, IL’s Attic Salt made one hell of an entry with their self-titled album. Back then I described the album as offering ‘ten catchy, hook-laden blasts of hooky power-pop meets indie pop-punk that reminded me in equal measures of Martha, Magnapop and Helicopter Helicopter’.

And well, I don’t think you would do Attic Salt a disservice by describing ‘Get Wise’ the same way. Except for the fact for the past three years the band has apparently kept on improving on their songwriting chops and that this time around the dual vocals courtesy of guitarists Andy Harmon and Alyssa Currie sound even better. The fact that they deliver their highly melodic, hook-laden and energetic songs in a particularly straight-forward, no-frills kinda way with an almost effortless ease, only adds to the band’s charm.

There honestly isn’t a single dud to be found among the album’s ten cuts. There are however a couple of tracks that stand out like previously released single ‘Mud’ and ‘Washington Street,’ which packs an amazing drive - courtesy of rhythm section Fred Malcom, and Skip Davis - as well as one of the album’s strongest choruses that finds Harmon and Curie joining forces. Elsewhere on the album, Attic Salt treat you to even more album highlights in the form of ‘Souvenir’ and the richly textured ‘Snowy Day’.