Space Camp: If You Find the Old Beat, Play It

Space Camp
If You Find the Old Beat, Play It
Royalty, Etc.

As the title of this band's debut suggests, there's pleasure to be had in an old beat, even if "old" here means turning gray around the edges at the age of 10. While there have been a handful of recent local releases (Middlepicker, Superdanger) that borrow from and give nods to decade-old Pacific Northwest indie rockers like Built to Spill and Modest Mouse, Space Camp might be the biggest fans of those jangly guitars, spiraled verses, and pained, multi-layered vocals. Produced by Mike Wisti (the Rank Strangers), the four-piece indie band relies less on splintered song arrangements à la Doug Martsch and more on pure pop aesthetics--Space Camp are all about modest guitar solos and catchy hooks. "I Am Over" is a two-minute power-pop break-up sing-along that will surely inspire some pogoing when played live, and "Beat Up Chevy" might start out languid and Midwestern introspective--harmonica and all--but by the end you won't be able to get the oddly jubilant chorus, "And we don't know how to slow this fucker down," out of your craw.