Samiam

Whatever’s Got You Down

[4/5] By the mid-’90s, Kurt Cobain was dead, Blake Schwarzenbach was god and the Bay Area-based, not-quite-hardcore band Samiam had officially come into their creative own after releasing the now-classic Clumsy album in ’94. Since then, the band have dabbled in everything from noisy pop-punk (1998’s You Are Freaking Me Out) to more radio-ready rock (2000’s Astray), all informed by the imaginative and quirky trajectory of Samiam’s best writing (see 1991’s Soar and 1992’s Billy). On Whatever’s Got You Down, Samiam’s first LP in six years, the band split the difference-from dexy-gallop punk beats (“Take Care”) to more mid-tempo rock anthems (“Get It Right”), singer Jason Beebout is up to his old choked-up tricks, singing out of time, all throaty, beautiful and desperate. All in all, this isn’t the greatest Samiam record, but it certainly isn’t the worst either. Whatever’s Got You Down should please longtime fans while giving new listeners a chance to hear what mid-’90s power-punk sounded like. (HOPELESS) Casey Lynch


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