Big Troubles At The Zoo

By Jennifer Zarichnyj / October 11th, 2011 in Music / New Jersey / 131 views

Jersey natives Big Troubles clearly have an affinity for late 90s vibes. Not only does their sound evoke feelings of a sun-drenched fall afternoon spent watching Pete and Pete, but looking at the band’s website is like looking at something your teen self would have created while wiping the grease from Totino’s Pizza Rolls on your jeans. The official homepage for Big Troubles is hosted by Angelfire and loaded with scrolling text, .GIFs, and yes— it even links to a Web Ring.

‘Romantic Comedy,’ their second LP, is rife with jangly melodies and sweet riffs, reminiscent of ‘Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain’-era Pavement. Despite the more polished sound than its predecessor, the band’s shoegaze influence (Ride, My Bloody Valentine) shines above the polished, poppy tunes whenever those guitar riffs kick in. One such riff can be heard in album opener She Smiles For Pictures.

Big Troubles have an awesome sense of humor; in the video for She Smiles For Pictures, they send a goth to the zoo. Not wanting to leave the house in the sun, our protagonist packs a big, black umbrella to protect him from the sun while he stands around looking bored at various animals. The song itself is pleasant background music; the irony of the warm-sounding toe-tapper backdropping an unhappy, one-earringed haute goth is surely intentional.

‘Romantic Comedy’ is out now on Slumberland Records.