The Owl In Daylight, besides being an unfinished book by Philip K. Dick, is also a generic, four-piece L.A.-based punk band. The band claims they are “a breath of fresh air for the stale California punk scene,” and then follows that up by saying they draw comparisons to Jawbreaker, Alkaline Trio, and Hot Water Music. I can hear a little bit of those bands on this EP, but I don’t see how you can be a breath of fresh air if you’re being compared to punk bands from the 1990s. I remember those bands and these six songs are a poor attempt to recreate the sound and feelings those bands created. The vocals are often very deadpan; there is little emotion displayed. My hope would be that the music would make up for this lack of emotion in the vocals, but, instead, it’s very safe and uninteresting. The band seems competent and capable of crafting songs, but with so much other good music out there, why settle for a band that leaves me feeling, “meh”?
–kurt (theowlindaylight.net)