The Pedaljets were part of the college scene back in the mid to late 80's. Formed in Lawrence, they released some well received Husker Du-ish albums in the late 80s. Toured with the SST crowd and played shows with just about everybody cool in those days. They were better players than most the hardcore scene and a little more accepting of taking a step towards popularity than say Husker Du (but, never willing to go full sell-out like the Replacements) and that combination actually got them on MTV for a brief period.
Despite possible big time success, the band unraveled and broke up. One member went full time with The Wilders, another to Grither, and despite the possible big time, they were done.
23 years later, they released a single and this full length. Paul Malinowski of Shiner fame got in the studio with the band and helped produce this for group's own label. The band isn't as crunchy and loud as they were back in the day, but fuck if they're aren't some great pop songs here. Honestly, they try to get tough and loud on about half the tunes, but I'm far more into the subdued stuff. I'm not talking Communion style subdued Pedaljets either, for the most part that stuff was still loud and angry, I'm talking ballad style Pedaljets. The life experience, acknowledgement of country music, and the fact they have no one to impress at this point suit them well. This LP could and should have been a total disaster, instead, it's pleasant surprise that's worth picking up. (You can get it super cheap right now at Mills Records and apparently free on the band's website, but that's got to be an error or an odd way of saying it's sold out).
Terra Nova
Tangled Up
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