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Sing Along

The Callouts capture their live stage energy on album Give Up

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The Callouts are a refreshingly all-in band. With a simple bass and drums to kick things off, the two guitars, bass, drums and vocals that make up the band come in fast, brash and make themselves heard the whole way through. The Callouts’ new record Give Up is the kind that immediately brings out the distinct spirit and nostalgia of blasting a record in your teenage bedroom or high school locker room through headphones and a Sony Walkman, not necessarily giving a hoot what people are saying or doing because you’ve got your album.

You get it, it gets you, and you know every chorus.

Without sounding like anyone in particular, The Callouts carrying out an anthemic new album, full sing-along chorus, and indulgent guitar solos that carries the torch of albums like Weezer’s The Blue Album or Alkaline Trio’s Goddammit in the sole pursuit of loudly proclaiming itself in each and every song by not only being something to listen to, but something to be a part of. I challenge you to not sing the chorus on “Amelia.”

Despite often being labeled pop-punk (not by this writer!), The Callouts offer music that relies on energy above all else. Gang vocals, memorable licks, and diverse guitar tones bring multiple layers to Give Up that might be written off under the umbrella of pop-punk. “I think our band gets pigeon-holed into the pop-punk title a little too much. Do we sound like a pop-punk band? Yes! However, with our new album, we’re kind of like the kids who are going away to college,” the band notes. “Sure, we’re bringing things along that helped shaped us, but we’re growing up and learning new things and having life changing experiences.”

The Callouts are a live band, and that is clearly conveyed in the recordings. Some records are a listening experience and it can be left alone, but other records are put on, listened to, and the next thought is I’ve got to see that live. The Callouts are that kind of band. They have the unique ability to invite the listener in as an active participant, as if they left a mic on stage just ready to be grabbed.

As the band puts it, “the best way to experience our band is live – there’s a few things we do differently when we play live than on the album, and like we said before, we are a high energy live band. A good show for us is reminiscent of VFW hall shows where people are crowded towards the front, bumping into the band, screaming back the lyrics at us, or stealing our microphones to belt out the part that means the mostto them.”

Part of the cohesiveness and inclusiveness of The Callouts comes from the communal practice space they share in Pawtucket with a number of other local acts. Oftentimes, the atmosphere where a song is created lends a certain feel or movement to it that might otherwise go unrealized if not for that place in time. “Having a space that bands can call their own just loosens up the musicians, which leads to more inspired work,” they say. “We even had a song on the record that was written 100 percent organically in that rehearsal space on a random Tuesday where it seemed everyone who shares the space stopped by during our practice for one reason or another – it’s called ‘Hot Tuesday’.”

The Callouts are Missa Hills on vocals, Drew Peasley and Mike Grillo on guitar, David Delmonico on bass, and drummer Dan Ulmschneider. Give Up was produced and engineered by Chaimes Parker, and mastered by Bradford Krieger at Big Nice Studio in Lincoln. Good friends of the band Linda Ragusa and Sean Carney (of the Scandals) did some work on backup vocals.

You can find the album on their website or Bandcamp site. It’s also available on Spotify, iTunes, Apple Music, and Youtube, as well as in the merch bin at their live shows. The Callouts will be playing May 9 at The Parlour with Stereoflower, North by North, and Heartsick Satellite. Search Facebook for more info.

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