Atom and His Package - Attention! Blah Blah Blah

Atom and His Package
Attention! Blah Blah Blah
Hopeless Records
Grade: A-

This is the latest and quite possibly the greatest by the ultra-cool one-man band Atom and His Package. An addictive tourer and writer of quirky songs, Atom (Adam) pursues the magic that has established himself as a bright spot in a sea of sludge. Though I think that Atom's slew of past releases are top-notch, when I first heard this I thought that it was bit recycled. Meaning it seemed that he was just poppin' out the same stuff in the same formula. At heart, that assessment is probably true, yet Atom comes through with the goods on Attention!.


Most noticeable on the record is that the music and all its minute parts are so tight that you have trouble understanding how one person could put it all together. On previous Atom releases, there was always a timing mistake here and there or something amiss (though there is one spot of some seriously out-of-tune guitars that I don't think (???) are supposed to be there on "Out to Everyone"). Here all of that is zeroed out, although the power of a drum machine is clear. There is probably not a bad song on the record (though for the inside joke (?) on "Matt Werth Speaks"), though some shine in the faces of others. On most of the best songs, there is the combination of catchy music with funny and witty lyrics. More importantly, Atom varies the essence of songs going from rock to metal riffs to ballads to new wave electronic, as he has characterized himself in the past. Some of the best songs include "Possession (not the one by Danzig)," "Mustache T.V.," "Does Anyone Else in the Room Want to Marry His or Her Own Grandmother?," "I'm Downright Amazed At What I Can Destroy With Just A Hammer" and "Dear Atom, You Do Not Want Children, Love Atom." Probably the standout track on Attention! is "I, Professional Gambler." Under a wave of mind-sticking guitar riffs and high cymbal tapping, Atom sings about his new idea of how to not have to work by becoming a professional gambler; who doesn't imagine that right? Moreover, he doesn't need to spend any time in college "just a brief a lesson in permutative probability."


Atom and His Package has kicked out a gem with Attention! Blah Blah Blah that should take him to new heights. Look for Atom on the road on a town near you. Maybe you will be lucky enough to see him with fellow road companion and new star-extraordinaire Har Mar Superstar.