Trip out:

Ripe is a forgotten gem of an album that received little fanfare upon it's initial release back in 1991; and it's a shame because this is a stellar record of amazingly catchy and brilliantly written pop songs. Emerging out of San Francisco, Field Trip sounds like an overly excited kid brother of R.E.M. But with a more heart on the sleeve approach to lyrics writing. their earnest style could have come across as cringeworthy, but thankfully, their words are scripted well enough that their youthful impact has it's charm. But lyrics aside, the musicianship on here is quite stunning. Top notch playing from all members and a surprising amount of tasteful guitar solos! Something that wasn't really happening all that much in these kinds of alternative rock bands in the early 90's. But Field Trip had the uncanny knack to keep it all together to make a great and sadly overlooked album. Some of my favorite cuts are the driving "Please," the humorous stomp of "Second Cousin," and the perfect pop of "Come Along." The only misfire is the cover song of "You Spin Me 'Round (Like A Record)" but i never liked the original song anyway, so perhaps i'm not the best judge. Overall, this is one outstanding record that i would recommend to grab as soon as possible if you have any remote interest in bands like: REM, The Del Fuegos, Material Issue, The Judybats...and any of those other Southern Alternative heroes of the 90's.

dig