Cemental Gear & Brickery Art

State of Mind (LIR Records)

Partly Cloudy

By David Lilly

How does one determine partly cloudy from partly sunny? Maybe it's a matter of perspective. In one case, the one I'm about to state, your ears can tell you. It is Partly Cloudy in a garage (metaphorically speaking) in Lexington. That's where Partly Cloudy writes and rehearses its rock-steady repertoire. That repertoire has a bluesy foundation and is full of punk-rocking power pop, and generally a mighty dose of letting off steam on the weekend.

"Misery," a fast-paced downpour of electric guitar and rumbling percussion, appropriately opens nearly an hour of power-trio bombardment and primal vocals. The primary subject matter of "She Won't Let Me" takes little imagination to figure out just by reading the title. It's plain obvious upon listening, but the important thing is that while "Misery" lets you in the door, "She Won't..." goes deeper into the garage and that's where most of the rest of the record lives, which leaves me quite the satisfied listener. `Nemo" is a strangely mid-tempo metal ballad of sorts and ideal for couples. Ya gotta hear it to understand; if I say more, I'll ruin it.

If you dig call-and-response tunes that are so hot they couldn't get cooler, you're ready for "It Be Me" both on the CD and at your next Partly Cloudy gig. "Memories" is definitely a break-time departure. Could easily double as an obligatory radio tune. But dogonnit, this is a rock band and the garage quickly continues rumbling with the next tune, "Deep Inside." The PC gang goes full circle by ending the disc with the "radio edit" version of "Misery." What a deal! Buy the album and the single is included.

The cyberspace garage for these guys is most appropriately named: www.partlycloudyrocks.com.