PunkADeka: https://www.punkadeka.it/i-like-allie-rare-instances-of-independent-thinking/

A inizio novembre è uscito per Paper + Plastick Records, NoReason Records, General Soreness Records ed Engineer Records “Rare Instances of Independent Thinking“, nuovo lavoro dei milanesi I Like Allie. Il quartetto emo/punk di Milano esce con un album intenso e coinvolgente, prodotto alla grande e con un songwriting eccelso, e lo dice una persona abbastanza lontana da questo tipo di punk rock.
Si parte con l’intro Opening Number, che funge da manifesto, da apripista, a quello che sarà l’ascolto di “Rare Instances of Independent Thinking“, e si finisce con la title track, classico pezzo dalle sonorità emo (il primo emo eh, non quello venuto fuori nei 2000, che comunque ha un suo perché…). Nel mezzo tantissimi alti, come Your Super Powers Are Stupid, forse la traccia più punk rock del disco assieme a Go Out There, Get Superpowers and Live Your Dreams, un insieme di capacità tecniche al servizio di un cantato sempre eccellente. Degne di nota anche Clichés of Love Story, un po’ Ataris, un po’ Matchbook Romance (senza screamo) e The Chaser, pezzo dai cori curatissimi che vede la collaborazione di Laura Stevenson.
Cosa è la cosa che più mi ha colpito di “Rare Instances of Independent Thinking“?
La sua “americanità”: il suono, la produzione e tutto il resto sono da disco made in USA, tant’è che il mixaggio è uscito dagli studi The Echo Mill di Chicago, ma se mancano le basi, se mancano le idee un disco può essere prodotto da Bill Stevenson all’interno della sua Blasting Room in Colorado, ma non avrebbe comunque lo stesso impatto ed effetto di questo lavoro dei I Like Alle. Bravissimi.

online translated:

At the beginning of November “Rare Instances of Independent Thinking“, a new work by Milanese I Like Allie, was released on Paper + Plastick Records, NoReason Records, General Soreness Records and Engineer Records. The emo / punk quartet from Milan comes out with an intense and engaging album, great produced and with an excellent songwriting, and says a person quite far from this type of punk rock. It starts with the intro Opening Number, which acts as a manifesto, a forerunner, to what will be listening to "Rare Instances of Independent Thinking", and ends with the title track, a classic piece with emo sounds (the first emo eh, not the one that came out in 2000, which still has its own reason ...). In between, many highs, such as Your Super Powers Are Stupid, perhaps the most punk rock track on the album together with Go Out There, Get Superpowers and Live Your Dreams, a set of technical skills at the service of an always excellent singing. Also noteworthy are Clichés of Love Story, a little Ataris, a little Matchbook Romance (without screamo) and The Chaser, a piece with well-kept choirs that sees the collaboration of Laura Stevenson. What is the thing that struck me most about "Rare Instances of Independent Thinking"? Its "Americanness": the sound, the production and all the rest are from record made in the USA, so much so that the mix came out of The Echo Mill studios in Chicago, but if the bases are missing, if the ideas are missing a record it may be produced by Bill Stevenson in his Blasting Room in Colorado, but it would still not have the same impact and effect as this I Like Alle work. Very good.

-Matteo Paganelli

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Colin's Punk Rock World: https://colinspunkrockworld.blogspot.com/2022/02/album-review-rare-instances-of.html

The album itself is an honest exploration of anxiety, depression, peer pressure, and ultimately trying to let negativity go. Opening Number quietly eases the album open, layering vocals with a slight crescendo, while bleeding nicely into Your Superpowers Are Stupid. This is a pop-punk infused treat, with more defined guitars and faster drums, and a hint of them pushing through the “standard” pop-punk sound. Loss and regret are covered in the short song How Weak I Can Be – a sweet little love letter of a tune with lyrics that are easy to relate to. The album sways back and forth between classic melodic pop-punk and incorporating new ideas into the mix, calling on the different musical styles and tastes of each band member (eg. Cliches of Love Stories and title track Rare Instances of Independent Thinking). Laura Stevenson lends her vocals at the end of the album, adding a light, ghostly backdrop to Renato’s lead. 

 

Here’s the thing. I love 90s emo and melodic hardcore, and I really wanted this album to work for me – Jeff Dean engineered the album (who also worked with Samiam, Braid), and Dan Coutant mastered it (The World Is A Beautiful Place, War On Women), which obviously peaked my interest when I read the press kit. On top of that, I adored I Like Allie’s 2016 emo-pop-punk EP The Wounds You Leave, but I can’t help but feel like there’s something missing from Rare Instances Of Independent Thinking, even though I’m not sure what that thing is.

 

Saying that, I can’t fault the band for trying a new avenue, and experimenting with maturing their earlier pop-punk/pop-emo sound. There is a gentle vulnerability in Renato’s voice that lends itself very well to that early emo sound, and it really does feel like they’ve taken on a lot of influence from 90s melodic emo bands, and looked to merge it with their own.

-Lara Roberts

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Salad Days Magazine: http://www.saladdaysmag.com/i-like-allie-rare-instances-of-independent-thinking/

Se dovessi paragonare il primo full length dei I Like Allie a qualcosa, il mio primo pensiero va a una di quelle capsule del tempo che gli americani seppelliscono riempiendole di oggetti personali del momento con il proposito di farle dissotterrare 50 anni più tardi (potrei sbagliarmi con la tempistica, ma rende il concetto). La capsula del tempo dei I Like Allie è stata sotterrata poco dopo il passaggio al nuovo millennio, finita la paura del millennium bug, quando su mp3.com trovavi i demo dei gruppi che poi sarebbero esplosi, quando la Kung Fu Records cercava disperatamente i nuovi The Ataris e la Vagrant Records era al top delle sue uscite. Moods e feels decisamente nostalgici per un periodo che non tornerà mai, o perlomeno non con quell’innocenza. E non sto dicendo che I Like Allie siano un gruppo derivativo, anzi, era solo per dare un minimo di coordinate a chi si approccia al gruppo per la prima volta. Dopo una manciata di ep di buonissima fattura, il quartetto esce con il tanto atteso ‘Rare Instances Of Independent Thinking’ e devo dire che per una volta ne è valsa la pena di aspettare, perché ci troviamo di fronte ad un gioiellino di pregevole fattura. Kung Fu Records, Vagrant, ma anche midwest emo, alternative rock e tanto indie moderno, non a caso il disco si chiude con il feat. della bravissima Laura Stevenson. Se vogliamo dare qualche coordinata nostrana, mi vengono in mente i Friday Star, specialmente per la tonalità vocale. Un mix di influenze importanti che i quattro riescono a maneggiare con disinvoltura creando un songwriting personalissimo, come si può sentire nei singoli ‘Your Superpowers Are Stupid’ e ‘A Reaction Paper On Salt’. Un disco consigliatissimo se siete nostalgici degli anni descritti nell’incipit di questa recensione, ma anche a chi crede che per fare del pop punk nel 2021 bisogna per forza aver Travis Barker sul proprio album, perché potrebbe essere un buon punto di partenza per scoprire tanta buona musica. Anche perché dobbiamo ritenerci fortunati di non aver dovuto aspettare 50 anni per dissotterrare questa capsula del tempo.

online translated:

If I were to compare the first full length of I Like Allie to anything, my first thought goes to one of those time capsules that Americans bury by filling them with personal items of the moment with the purpose of having them unearthed 50 years later (I could be wrong with timing, but makes the concept). The time capsule of I Like Allie was buried shortly after the transition to the new millennium, when the fear of the millennium bug ended, when on mp3.com you found demos of the groups that would then explode, when Kung Fu Records was desperately looking for new ones. The Ataris and Vagrant Records was at the top of its releases. Definitely nostalgic moods and feels for a period that will never return, or at least not with that innocence. And I'm not saying that I Like Allie are a derivative group, on the contrary, it was only to give a minimum of coordinates to those who approach the group for the first time. After a handful of well-made EPs, the quartet comes out with the long-awaited 'Rare Instances Of Independent Thinking' and I must say that for once it was worth the wait, because we are faced with a jewel of fine workmanship. Kung Fu Records, Vagrant, but also midwest emo, alternative rock and a lot of modern indie, it is no coincidence that the disc ends with the feat. of the talented Laura Stevenson. If we want to give some local coordinates, Friday Stars come to mind, especially for the vocal tonality. A mix of important influences that the four manage to handle with ease, creating a very personal songwriting, as can be heard in the singles 'Your Superpowers Are Stupid' and 'A Reaction Paper On Salt'. A highly recommended record if you are nostalgic for the years described in the incipit of this review, but also for those who believe that to make pop punk in 2021 you must necessarily have Travis Barker on your album, because it could be a good starting point to discover a lot good music. Also because we must consider ourselves lucky that we did not have to wait 50 years to unearth this time capsule.

-Michael Simeon