THE GOLD STAR™ EP is the debut release from Joplin, Missouri-based slacker rock band, Gold Star. The album kicks off with the melodic, riff-laden “Miss Rita”. When the snare hits you know your head won’t be staying still for long. However, as soon as your head gets bobbing, you’ll be inclined to start head banging to the fuzzy and catchy refrain of the chorus, which is a cry for compassion and help in making it through the drudgery of life. Like all great pop songs, it doesn’t overstay its welcome. After a tension-building bridge we are treated to one final full-force chorus before the track ends, leaving us wanting more.
Fortunately, we are in luck as the alt-rock, sludge-waltz that is “So Sad To See It” succeeds it. Chugging guitar and hi-hat move us along as the woozy vocal melody laments the awkwardness that accompanies constantly running into someone that you’d rather never see again.To top off the EP, we get the standout track “Malaise”. A prairie-surf, country rock vibe that has us feeling like we’re lazily, hazily chilling in a hammock on a sunny afternoon, with a hat cocked over one eye and a piece of straw dangling from our mouth. The chorus is a sweet and endearing promise that even though the world is a chaotic and ever-changing mess, love will endure and see us through. THE GOLD STAR™ EP is out now digitally on all streaming platforms.
Written by John Brouk