published: 18 /
10 /
2005
Label:
Side One Dummy Records
Format: CD
Strong debut album from promising new all girl Californian-based punk act Go Betty Go, who all ended up in group therapy during its recording
Review
One question sprung to mind as soon as this arrived through my door. :Who is Betty? And just where is she meant to be going?” Oh, it’s the guitarist . Okay ! Well whatever. Unlike what the band's name may suggest, this isn’t a cheerleading group or something of the sort. They are a female punk band from Glendale, California U.S.A. This is Go Betty Go's first full-length album and by all accounts it may never have happened. It seems that the time leading up to and during recording was anything but straightforward and the whole band ended up in group therapy. But they are still here and have this album to prove it.
The first two songs, 'Saturday' and 'I’m from L.A' are very pop-sounding and I have to admit that the words “Josie and the Pussycats” sprang to mind. 'Get Out', however, threw those thoughts right out the window. This song is a tail of drug dealings, guns, and gangsters which is anything but pop (unless you count 50 cent, but that’s another story). With songs like this and others such as 'Crumbling Down' and 'Ticking Bombs' you get a much more in depth feel of this band and what they’re singing about, and it's a lot more than just boyfriends and going to the mall. This is a group who sing about the bad times as well as the good, and who all the while manage to make it catchy and entertaining.
The band show a different side to their collective musical bow, with songs such as 'Pirate Song', which sounds very much as if it were written by a bunch of drunks with beards and wooden limbs. Luckily it sounds much better coming from Go Betty Go. Vocalist Nicolette Vilar showcases her Latino side on two of the songs as well, in the shape of 'No Hey Perdon' and 'Donde Voy', the latter of the two being my personal favourite of the album with it’s driving and bouncy guitars courtesy of Betty Cisneros herself.
Overall 'Nothing is More' is a good debut, but it does sound like a debut. There are some really good songs on it, but you get the feeling that they are capable of more than just what is on the record. Go Betty go sound like they will develop their own sound more than they have done so already, and when they do they could be quite something.
Track Listing:-
1
Saturday
2
I'm from LA
3
Get Out
4
The Pirate Song
5
You Want It All
6
No Hay Perdon
7
Runaway
8
Crumbling Down
9
Ticking Bombs
10
Laugh Again
11
Donde Voy
12
Unreal