The Draft - In a Million Pieces

The Draft
In a Million Pieces
Epitaph Records
Grade: A-

When Hot Water Music broke up dreams were crushed and hopes were dashed. You can make a reasonable argument that HWM had lost the feeling of their early records and many of their later career records were too straight forward punk. Still, the end of relationships brings nostalgia to the fore. Well, now there is no reason to quite dreaming dreamers thanks to the Draft. The Draft are simply HWM minus 1. The one missing member of HWM from the Draft is guitarist/vocalist Chuck Ragan. With the Draft, bassist Jason Black, drummer George Rebelo, and vocalist/guitarist Chris Wollard are joined by guitarist Todd Rockhill. To not make and discuss the connection between HWM and the Draft’s would be an absurdity. As much as the members may believe it’s a new era, In a Million Pieces is a natural extension of HWM. For me, and probably many others, that is great. And the Draft set out that agenda immediately on the opener “New Eyes Open” that shares a common song structure with the past five years of HWM material. More importantly for the Draft, “New Eyes Open” is a strong song that will grab a new collection of converts, and thus a wise choice to kick off In a Million Pieces. They power through “Lo Zee Rose” and the continuation of gang vocals before offering the somewhat odd up-picking poppy “Let It Go.” The Draft bring back the day on the hard rocking “Alive or Dead” with a line that provides the album title and serves as one of the stronger numbers here. “Bordering” begins strangely and continues uneventfully, “Impossible” moves at deliberate speed, and the odd guitar tempo returns on “Wired.” “Not What I Wanna Do” and the smoking “Out of Tune” are highlights, but the group vocals on “All We Can Count On” create a questionable sound. In a Million Pieces closes on the average “Longshot” and the slow burner “The Tide Is Out;” not exactly an auspicious ending. Clearly, the Draft serve as Hot Water Music fans’ last refuge and In a Million Pieces is the first offering.