'Off Key' could not be anymore wrong as Roger Manganelli sings his heart out without missing a note on this self-proclaimed speed-punk album, which is the side project of Roger from Less Than Jake. This album in a way reminds me a lot of LTJ without horns, faster, and without Chris on vocals with Roger, instead having Ryan Geis backing him up, even singing a few songs along the way, along with the bassist, Gui Amador, and the drummer, Jake Crown, their style is all about catchy melodies, while playing as fast as they can.
Even if you don't like LTJ, I think there's a lot you could enjoy here if you like pop-punk, such as Blink-182.One of the things I love most about this album is the lyrics. Roger wrote the lyrics for this album, and while LTJ has some of my favorite lyrics, written by their drummer Vinnie Fiorello, Roger may be my second favorite lyricist, as he writes about his insecurities, fears, and ripping himself apart from the inside, along with social commentary.
This album is exactly what everyone's expected of Roger, from stuff like this showing in some of his songs in LTJ. It's punk you can thrash to. Roger's vocals are amazing here, like they have been for a while, it's so clean and serene, not even a hint of harshness in it unless he forces it in some songs.
Another great thing is that it has a cover of Suffragette City by David Bowie to close everything off, and they make the song their own. It almost puts his to shame, and it even features JR from LTJ on saxophone. That is classy.
Sorry, Bowie, but they took your song and ran with it.
The only problem with this album is that it's so criminally short! Aside from that, I really don't have a problem with it. Is it perfect? Nope. Is it revolutionary? Not at all, but it's still pretty good for what it is. Definitely worth checking out if you like LTJ, or even just like pop-punk.
7/10
Recommended tracks: Lift!, Sinking, Average
