In Our Gun (Gomez, 2002)

It's funny how some bands from the 1990's succeed and continue to this day and others don't. While some have gone on to run tattoo parlors, launch internet startups, or vanish off the face of the earth, others stick with the music in any role they can find. My friend had some wisdom about this. Some do music because that's the only thing between them and the streets or (even worse) a fast food career. Others have backup plans, like college degrees in business or library science (!) just in case the whole music thing doesn't work out. Maybe it's just the way things work that those in the former high-risk-high-reward category are the ones who breakthrough while the rest of us choose comfort, families, etc. Now I'm not saying one is better than the other (and I certainly like my non-music life), but generally if you aren't giving 100% to music it's increasingly unlikely that you will become a professional musician, and even if you are, there is no guarantee you will enjoy a nice long career in music. Think of all those classic-case flameouts like Skip Spence (leader of Moby Grape; died homeless in 1999) or Rusty Day (singer in Cactus; murdered in a drug deal gone sideways).

I first discovered Gomez during that fruitful college radio period around 1998. They were not as weird as the Beta Band, but definitely more out there than more established bands like Oasis, Blur, and (later) Coldplay. Although they never blew up, they built up a nice head of steam with their first album, Bring It On, which has sustained them nicely over the following 15 years. Although I liked their first album just fine, I didn't invest and kind of forgot about Gomez, but they deftly avoided becoming a "lost band" and have settled into a steady-state where they aren't blowing minds or taking over Top 40 radio, but have a solid enough fan base to support whatever they do for as long as they want. I don't think many bands are that lucky, dodging the whirlpools of obscurity or destructive fame. In Our Gun came into my orbit as a free promotional copy during the Bookstore Era of my life. Honestly, I never gave it a solid listen until recently. I'm still not a superfan, but they have my respect because they know their talents and skills and use them well. I just don't get really excited about much of their music though. There are a few bright spots here and there ("Shot Shot", "Army Dub"), but not a whole lot pops. But that's just me, and I wouldn't want to scare anyone off from scoping out a collection of career highlights, or even going back to the first album, the one that made everything possible.