[FFA] The Orwells

I'm trying to remember how I was at 18/19/20. Snotty and punk, sure, but the real question was where I wanted my life to go. I'm sure I wanted to make rock and roll. I'm also pretty sure I wanted wanted to travel the country ,and meet tons of famous people, and be famous by default. The truth of the matter is, I don't remember. Having the motor skills of a rock, I just ended up traveling the country and sleeping on floors and drinking everyone's beers. I joined the Coast Guard. I studied to be a Cartographer. It's what you do when you're that age. Unless of course you happen to be in The Orwells.

The members of The Orwells were all still in high school when forming in Chicago suburb, Elkhurst. Playing and writing their own songs, they were "discovered" shortly after by Aquarium Drunkard's Justin Gage. Gage quickly snatched them up for his Autumn Tone label and pushing out Remember When, consisting of 12 songs in just under 40 minutes.
On the surface, Remember When doesn't break any new ground. It's lo-fi and fuzzy. But after a few listens, you realize the pop sensibilities. Songs like Mallrats (La La La) get completely stuck in your head. It's not new. FIDLAR has done it. So has The Black Lips and Wavves. The difference is these were just kids. Literally.

A year later saw a pair of EP's released. The 5 song Other Voices, including the title track produced by Dave Sitek from TV On The Radio. The 17 songs that made up The Orwells discography could have stopped, there and they would have been a great footnote in American rock and roll history. I honestly don't think anyone was prepared for what came next.

The Who Needs You EP dropped in September of 2013. Perhaps the catchiest tune of the year. Forget the Misfits cover. Forget The Black Lips cover. Forget the throw away live track. They could have released this as a single A side and made just as much of a splash.