Album Review: All of Something by Sports

Ohio-based five-piece Sports have delivered an irresistibly catchy, and incredibly well executed set of songs with their sophomore release, All of Something. Balancing equal parts jangling guitar pop and punk, Sports deliver earnest and heartfelt hooks and verses throughout the album to ensure each song remains memorable and distinct, from the deliberate build-up of opener "Stunted" to the upbeat bounce of "Get Bummed Out. "The subtlety of the instrumental mix and overall minimalist production, courtesy of Kyle Gilbride, add to the atmosphere of the album and emphasize Carmen Perry's vocals.

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Sports recorded a debut album last year, when they were still students at bucolic Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio. Since graduation earlier this year, they've gone their separate ways — but their second album still evokes the extremely charming sound of late senior year, enjoying the hilariously cheap off-campus rents and letting it all hang out on the songs you knock out between trips to the bar. All of Something is full of smart, sweetly slashing indie-rock that recalls peers like Swearin' and Waxahatchee, with wonderful tunes about wasting anxious hours on nervous boys, "biting my nails and biting your tongue.

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Head here to submit your own review of this album. Sophomore albums are the most difficult to make. With first records, you're given leeway. As a band, you're still wet behind the ears. You're still learning, still developing your sound, realizing what it takes living through true studio sessions ….

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Sports — All of Something (Father/Daughter)The pastoral side of indie rock — or, with a nod to Ian Svenonius’s recent argument over terminology, college rock — never really went away, but it’s experienced something of a resurgence in recent years. While it wasn’t the first example of the style, The Feelies’ The Good Earth seems a kind of template-setter. First and foremost, there’s the title, but there’s also the openness of the sound.

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