The Methadones
Not Economically Viable
Thick
Former Screeching Weasel Dan Schafer first formed The Methadones in 1993, and they have been traveling down the path of pop-punk ever since. To say that the terrain of pop-punk is well worn is an understatement. The genre has been so far beaten into the soil that it is buried and pavement has already hardened above it. It’s been done, and it’s been done well. Unless your band is so phenomenal that they’re going to make The Ramones look like The Monkees, you’re better off unplugging your guitar and staying home. The Methadones felt that they had something new to say with their power chords and catchy melodies, and have consequently released another album of dribble.
If the title, Not Economically Viable, rings a bell, it’s because it is directly borrowed from Michael Douglas’s character in the film Falling Down. You remember that one, right? It’s about a guy who goes on a rampage when he is pushed to the edge when dealing with his own seemingly meaningless existence in reaction to The Establishment. Well, the record is inspired by that film. The cover art, which depicts briefcase-carrying white collar men with pigs heads superimposed overtop of a barcode, is probably the strongest element of the project.
The music is generic, middle-aged three-chord boredom. There are some catchy songs, of course ( “Bored of Television,” “What Went Wrong”), but that’s most likely because the riffs are just the same old, tired ones we’ve been hearing for years. Listen closely to “Less Than Zero,” and you’ll hear “Love is All Around” – otherwise known as the Mary Tyler Moore theme song.
Doubtless, The Methadones are filler in an already exhausted genre.
The Methadones: http://www.themethadones.com
