Hi everyone, Bigthony Pumptano here, the internet's busiest music nerd, and it's time for a review of this new Westside Cowboy album, It Goes On.

Yes, this is the debut full-length LP from UK rock outfit Westside Cowboy, a band whose background I don't think you can really get into without mentioning the storied windmill scene that has been covered and talked about time and time and time again from over there.

As for years now, there has been an interesting and burgeoning scene of new artists oriented around this legendary windmill venue. Because of the scene that has formed around that performance space, we've got some of the most interesting bands and rock outfits to come out of the UK in years.

In fact, many of them are now on their third albums, second singers, or fourth tours at this point. So the windmill scene, however exactly you want to categorize it has been a thing for a minute and is still uplifting new talent, as Westside Cowboy certainly has its share of connections to that scene and space, and again, this is their debut full-length LP, which I was very highly anticipating given how quality some of the material was on an EP they put out not too long ago.

Some of the teasers in the lead-up to this record were pretty solid as well, and out of the gate, there has been no shortage of praise for this record. In fact, for many who, maybe you might say, are windmill-biased, if there is such a thing, it is being built up a little bit to be one of the best indie releases of the year. So I kind of went into this record wondering if it would live up to that hype.

To which I would argue, no, not fully, but that's not to say that this album doesn't have good things going for it, or that at the very least, it doesn't lay the groundwork for a potentially interesting discography. Because off the bat, I'll say this. As a unit, as a band, Westside Cowboy sounds very good, very tight. A well-oiled machine, if you will.

The production and the playing across this project are really clean, are really quality, it sounds organic, the band sounds very together, and even when I do hit a track that maybe I'm not so crazy about, the textures or timbre of the instrumentation or the songwriting, at the very least, I am kind of wowed by the band's dynamics, the way they will sort of escalate, certain points of the song with a growing intensity or a chorus that really bursts with a few extra layers.

Those dynamics really make all the difference on some of these tracks, and it shows a certain attention to detail on the performance side that some artists and bands just lack. Especially when they're home producing all of their stuff purely to a click track and don't really have a sense of how to make the instrumentation sound live. So that's a very good bassline quality this record has going for it, for sure.

Simultaneously, one other thing that struck me about this record, initially, is just its severe lack of character and voice. As the opener, "Kick Stones (the Boys)" kind of sounds like maybe a Rolling Stones song or something from the Loaded Era of Velvet Underground, but played with a much softer and sleepier approach that honestly just comes across as very bland and low energy.

Meanwhile, on "Paper Chains", some of the instrumentation on this track sounds like a dead ringer for something from the first couple of The Strokes records with its kind of dry, plucky, indie rock sound. And while, again, the performance is solid and the band has a lot of these elements down pat, they don't bring even a fraction of the swagger or character that a band like The Strokes does that actually makes this sound and style kind of work.

With that being said, the band does actually manage to dish out a stunner chorus on the track, "Well done kid, you did it". That boy-girl doubled-up, "Hold on to that thought, hold on to that thought", is one of the biggest earworms on the record, handily. But it's not too long after this, with the song "Big Wheels", the band puts out a song that is so slow, so uneventful, and so uninspired, it's just a tedious chore to listen to.

So yeah, the first half of this record is really spent kind of moving through these very vibey and derivative dime-a-dozen indie pastiche motifs. And while I do appreciate the kind of collective spirit of the group with them, trading off singing and songwriting duties on occasion, that does, in a way, also kind of contribute to an overall lack of focus and direction here. But by that same token, changing things up in that way does lead to some of the best tracks on the back half of the album, and I'm hoping that I don't know, one or two of these songs sort of indicate a direction for the band to move in.

Because certainly these moments were a bit more compelling than almost anything leading up until this point. Of course, I'm talking about "Pin Up Boys", which features a very dramatic, quivering lead vocal, and an almost folksy chord progression as well. "You learn your lessons, and you stay that way," I love that croon right there. What a great hook, and that burst of guitars, like I said, on the chorus. The dynamics of the band, when they're on point, they're on point.

Following this, the track "Coyote" has a much more tender lead vocal. A little warbly, too. I mean, it's certainly not going to be for everyone, but it makes for one of the most unique and standout moments on the album. As does the heart-wrenching acoustic ballad, "Take My Leaving as I Love You," which, for sure, could have had a stronger finish, but again, even as is, it's one of the most memorable moments here.

Following that, we have a passable closer, and overall an album that, to my ears, again, has solid, admirable moments peppered throughout its track list, but overall, it's, it's really a mixed bag. But again, so long as the band finds ways to further pursue the elements of their songwriting and vocal stylings that actually do stand out in a memorable and interesting way in this track list.

We could definitely be looking forward to a more distinct sophomore record down the road, which is why I'm feeling a decent to strong 6 on this album.

Anthony Fantano, West Side Cowboy, forever.