The quality of punk rock blowing in from the Windy City is currently unprecedented, with a whole generation of bands brought up on The Lawrence Arms, Alkaline Trio and Smoking Popes releasing killer albums in the last 18 months.
Sincere Engineer’s ‘
Bless My Psyche’ might just be the best yet, however.
Indeed, the Lawrence Arms comparison is perhaps most apt, as there’s a fatalistic black humour to much of ‘Bless My Psyche’ that mirrors the lyrical futility expressed by Brendan Kelly’s enduring punks.
Opener ‘
Trust Me’ is the perfect example; a story of struggling to get your shit together when there’s a dozen more important things to do. It’s a sentiment that is echoed throughout ‘Bless My Psyche’, but which really shines on the re-recorded standout ‘
Dragged Across The Finish Line’, with Belos pleading that she’s “Not trying to win… just trying to finish.” Minor victories are cause for celebration on ‘Bless My Psyche’, but the real star of the show is how such triumphs are refracted through Belos’ wry and resigned lyrics.
