May Day

new 12 track solo album from the get up kids man. matt, who's best known as the front man of the get up kids, has been responsible for a host of incredible records over the past decade (15 full-lengths in total!) through his work with the get up kids, the new amsterdams, terrible twos and solo material under his own name, of which 'may day' is his second album. in some ways 'may day' can be seen as pryor's most basic and direct album yet. the recording, with the strict time frame imposed by the may deadline, was a case of 'hit record and capture the moment'. perfect! no time to dwell on things or over-think. that's maybe personified by opener, 'don't let the bastards get you down', with a spartan acoustic guitar and pryor's almost disembodied vocals. or 'unhappy is the only happy that you'll ever be', built around a simple banjo. but the acoustic-based setting is an environment pryor thrives on, personified by his live excursions on the where's the band? tours, where he and a bunch of like-minded friends (including dustin kensrue from thrice, and chris conley from saves the day), have headed out, leaving both their respective bands, and their electric guitars, behind, each playing acoustic renditions of fan favourites. because sometimes it's plain fun, with just an acoustic guitar and a microphone.