American Music Club
California

THE REVIEW

What I love about American Music Club and particularly about this album is that it becomes more beautiful with each listen. Or rather, every month, every year that passes, I feel more and more like listening to it again, and each time I appreciate it more. The greatness of American Music Club lies in being much deeper than they seem at first listen. California, for example, is a very melodic album, but certainly not pop; it's an accessible album, but definitely not for everyone; it's an album at times moving, shrouded in an aura of sadness but never decadent and instead full of hope.

Mark Eitzel, a shy but brave personality, always seems on the verge of bursting into tears and interprets his lyrics, always very poetic and pessimistic, with such emotional involvement that it often brought him to tears during concerts. Their records, and particularly this one which is my favorite, ooze poetry from every corner. And so, one can find themselves in front of simple stories, of girls suffering from the malaise of life, who cannot be comforted, killed by the oppressive dream of happiness. The emptiness that sooner or later everyone faces is one of the main themes, that emptiness that grips you and not even getting drunk seems to solve anything, that leaves you alone even when in company. And loneliness often recurs in Mark's lyrics, who does not fail to remind however that "When you wake up in the morning/You won’t remember that anyone was here/And that life is so rewarding/And I guess that you’re the grand prize my dear"