With influences and roots in screamo, hardcore, and punk, Long Beach duo
This Wild Life were originally conceived as a pop-punk band in the classic SoCal mode. Members
Kevin Jordan and
Anthony Del Grosso took their crack at playing explosive, amped-up gigs and even issued an initial EP in that style before doing an about-face and slimming down to the succinct acoustic format heard here on their
Epitaph debut,
Clouded. It was through the revelation of hearing
Dashboard Confessional's
Swiss Army Romance that the two decided they could achieve the same amount of passion and drive as before, but delivered instead with two guitars and tight harmonies. Produced by
Copeland's
Aaron Marsh,
Clouded builds on the foundation set by the band's earlier singles like "Puppy Love" and "Take It Back," adding strings, piano, and subtle percussion to adorn this new set of songs. The distant chime of a vibraphone adds a nice austere quality to the song "History" and mellow electric guitars flesh out the crescendos on tunes like "Concrete" and "Don't Say." Their voices are strong and clean and the parts are well-played, as
This Wild Life offer their own unique take on a familiar style, turning down the volume on the punk and focusing more on the pop. ~ Timothy Monger
