A Hangover You Don't Deserve [PA] (CD - 2004)

Bowling for Soup: Jaret Reddick (vocals, guitar); Erik (vocals, bass guitar); Chris (guitar); Gary (drums).

Looking at the cover images of a quartet of tattooed, Orange County-style punk rockers, one might be forgiven for assuming that Bowling for Soup is yet another band of Blink 182 wannabes. While A HANGOVER YOU DON'T DESERVE's chugging guitars, high-pitched vocals, tight playing, and rapid tempos are certainly elements common to the music of the Texas-based combo's Southern California brethren, Bowling for Soup's sharp songwriting places it in a different category altogether.

With pure pop smarts on par with Fountains of Wayne, lead vocalist/songwriter Jaret Reddick is more inventive than the average neo-punk frontman. Lyrically, Reddick may be the closest thing to his genre's Elvis Costello, spinning out unusually clever observations and oft-hilarious pop-culture references. ("Ohio [Come Back To Texas]" may be the only song in history to name-check Pantera and the twin daughters of George W. Bush in a single line.) A must-listen for fans of both pop-punk and power-pop's humorous sides, A HANGOVER YOU DON'T DESERVE will keep listeners snickering and moshing in equal measure. minimize