The songs reflect Burg’s recent divorce from his wife, but listening to the upbeat and bouncy vocals, you’d never know it. The lyrics are quite scathing, though, in content. Clearly, the material here is very personal — unfortunately there’s nothing overly intricate or really interesting about the music itself on this EP. The album was recorded live with a loop pedal and no overdubs besides Burg’s vocals, leaving little room for complexity and improvisational.
In the few times I’ve listened to this album, there’s a glaringly obvious feel that the effort was thrown together in a rush (maybe that was done on purpose?). The bass guitar on the opening track “Three Way Answers” really distorts the sound of the song, causing me to check my bass levels on my stereo on the first listen. I will admit that the catchy feel of the songs started to become infectious by the third or fourth listen, but not enough to change my opinions on this album.
Sooner I Wish is undoubtedly a work of personal reflection about the heartbreaks of a marriage gone wrong. While the lyrics tell of that pain, the music does not. It’s too catchy and, dare I say, “indie.” Or maybe I just can’t dig this kind of music.
(Polyvinyl Records, 206 N. Randolph Street, Suite M100, Champaign, IL 61820)
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