The biggest thing you will hear on opening track “Way Back East,” which sets the tone for the album, is the scorching wall of guitar that fills the air like a Dinosaur Jr. track and Seth Goldman’s vocals which have a similar inflection and energy of Mac McCaughan (Superchunk). At over 4 minutes, the track is well developed as it plays back-n-forth from instrument blasts and lyrics. The sharp angular turns in “Drinkin’ Through Your Heaven” reminds me tons of the earliest Modest Mouse albums on Up Records like The Lonesome Crowded West (1997) and This Is A Long Drive… (1996). It is that raw indie rock that blasts through these tracks and gives All We Did Was Dream an infectious staying power with repeat listens.
I think you can hear other groups right now similar to High Pony but what makes All We Did Was Dream stand out is the band’s well composed song structures. The record’s 8 tracks have an average time of 4:45 which lets the band showcase their songwriting talents with themes of forgiveness, acceptance, and a strong desire to be good. High Pony can come at you strong with an all out drum and guitar attack but also can pull way back in places like on “Gentle Ears” which ends with just the hush vocals of Goldman. These longer songs let the band build up, tear down and build up again all within one song. The result is a record in All We Did Was Dream that represents the timeless energetic spirit of indie rock past glories while kicking 2021 in the ass!
Christopher Anthony
For more of Christopher Anthony’s music reviews, check out The Fire Note
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