Arizona trio The Bad Selves’ are back at it with their second studio album, TOO, which dropped in mid-July. Ten all-American rock songs match a Springsteen sound with grunge-punk guitar tones, sing-along choruses with lyrics steeped in meaning, four chords with a story that practically any rock fan can relate to.
Created by singer-songwriter and guitarist Alex Kesaris, bassist and backing vocalist Kelly Parson, and drummer Robert Alec Whaley, in conjunction with engineer and co-producer Shane Matsumoto at SER Soundworks studio, TOO follows The Bad Selves’ debut album, WON, which released in early 2023.
TOO possesses with a slight demo quality which only makes it more exciting. This isn’t one of your hyper-produced modern rock records so touched-up and computerized all the feeling and thrill is eviscerated. The Bad Selves shine in their raw, live sound, bringing the excitement of real, homegrown music back to the rock scene.
Diving into their lyrics lays bare a new level of authenticity, The Bad Selves self-describing their songs as “reflections, memories, and cards” bearing messages from one soul to another.
And they’re not afraid to go deep. TOO captures a constellation of stories; a tapestry woven from songs about divorce, the COVID-19 pandemic, life lessons spoken from father to son, even the existential realization that every musician will play one final song before they turn to dust. But The Bad Selves flood these negatives with color. Positive common threads tie the record together: each song and story offering a new perspective on perseverance, determination, resilience and gratitude.
One of my personal favorites: Tangerine, an acoustic ballad with a springtime feel and a backstory that could make you tear up. I’ll let Alex tell its lyrical inspirations in his own words:
Tangerine is my wife’s story of her experience as a seven year-old picking up her Mom from the hospital after missing her so much – and on that day the sky was so blue, and the grass so green, and that tangerine Life Saver they got on the way home tasted so sweet and wonderful. She felt like Mom coming home was like saving her life. So, it’s a song about Tangerine, my dear mom-in-law from Pasadena (Orange and Tangerine country), who’s in a nursing home now.
Like the sound of TOO? Fans can keep their eyes peeled for The Bad Selves’ third album, TREE, anticipated for release in 2026! And our verdict for TOO itself? Recommended.
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