Music: Junior Achiever: All The Little Letdowns

Our Take

Junior Achiever started off as the solo project of Gene Champagne, drummer for The Killjoys, but would quickly turn into a full on power-pop/pop-punk act featuring musicians that Champagne had worked with before. Unlike some of the other artists in their genre, Junior Achiever has been on a few compilations and soundtracks before actually releasing a full length album. And nearly three years after some listeners became aware of this band thanks to the Degrassi the Next Generation soundtrack, they have released their debut album All The Little Letdowns. The results are mixed, but definitely showcase potential.

The songs on All The Little Letdowns all fly by in two to three minutes, and in this time span each track offers very polished and clean power pop arrangements. But there is also a hint of Weezer style alternative rock in the arrangements as well, ensuring that Junior Achiever is more than just another generic power pop group. However, though the grooves are well polished the hooks aren’t always there. While there are certainly some notable moments throughout the course of this release, listeners will struggle to recall what many of these songs sound like after the album has finished playing.

Gene Champagne may have started off his musical career as a drummer, but on this release he reveals himself to be quite the competent singer. His voice is very melodic but never feels whiny, which can sometimes be a problem for bands of this type. Because of this, Junior Achiever definitely has the potential to appeal to listeners who don’t always go for power pop. Champagne has a lot to say throughout the course of All The Little Letdowns, and though much of the album appears to have been written based on his personal experiences the themes are still easy to connect to.

All The Little Letdowns is a solid album despite the fact that it lacks the memorable hooks needed to make it a timeless hit. But the sheer level of polish and vocal talent on this release shows that Junior Achiever has the potential to become as revered as some of the more popular acts in this genre. For now though , we have a competent start to what could be a long running career.

http://www.engineerrecords.com

Chris Dahlberg
November 19, 2008