SUNDAY PAPER: 5 FUTURE ROCK STARS
"5. YOUNG ANTIQUES
After years of thankless club gigs, this power-pop outfit is poised for greatness and a much larger audience. The video for “Johnny Da Da,” from their recent release, “Soundtrack To Tear Us Apart,” showcases the ’Tiques as not only an undeniably potent rock trio but a viable national act.—L.V.S."
Hal Horowitz, SUNDAY PAPER
"These tunes, all written by frontman Blake Rainey, reach out and grab you, shaking your senses like the best power-pop should. There’s less punky, garage-styled aggression here than in the past, but Rainey—who’s been pursuing an introverted folkie solo career for the last few years—clearly needed to get these tunes off his chest. Fans of Cheap Trick and especially the Smithereens will find a kindred spirit in these sharp, tight rockers.
Rainey’s in terrific voice throughout, soulful and rich, working with engineer Tim Delaney and thickening the band’s sound for a perfectly paced, no-frills set that clocks in at just over a half hour. Recording in the basement of Atlanta’s Biltmore Hotel adds a bit of grime to these arrangements, which seem more expansive than on earlier releases.
Songs such as “Johnny Da Da” make the most of the limited instrumentation, utilizing short bursts that build the tension and release it in two-and-a-half-minute explosions of rocking pop as immediate as anything in the Plimsouls’ catalog"
Chad Radford, CREATIVE LOAFING
"Fronted by Blake Rainey (guitar/vocals) and rounded out by Blake Parris (bass) and Kevin Charney (drums), the group's songs are dripping with whiskey-soaked heartbreak and are wrapped up in loose and confessional songcraft driven by a sultry, jangly garage-rock snarl."
Jason Peterson, PERFORMER MAGAZINE
It is refreshing to hear straight-ahead, poppy rock songs done well, like a double scoop ice cream cone on a hot summer day. On Soundtrack to Tear Us Apart, the third album from Atlanta rockers Young Antiques, each song is a power-pop treat. The band has crafted a 10-song collection packed full of catchy hooks, clever lyrics, and the solid musicianship of veteran players confident in their abilities and chemistry together. Soundtrack to Tear Us Apart starts with the energetic “(There Isn’t Anything That Means) Nothing at All,” and builds throughout. It says something for Soundtrack’s depth that one of its best songs, “On a Planet,” is the last track. With no missteps and lots of hits, Soundtrack to Tear Us Apart is a solid album through and through. While its September release puts Soundtrack out for fall, it feels like a summer record alleviating the heat with its cool, refreshing tunes."
Charles Spano, ALL MUSIC GUIDE
"Atlanta trio the Young Antiques play angry-young-man rock that draws from Hüsker Dü and the '80s Minneapolis hardcore scene as well as the Jam and Elvis Costello. With this unique, if a bit retro mix, the band creates buoyant and propulsive songs that shoot straight to the heart of what makes good old rock & roll great. With Blake Parris on bass, Blake Rainey on vocals and guitar and Kevin Charney on drums, The Young Antiques are back together after first unleashing their raw power pop and post-punk anthems in 2000 when the group self-released their debut, Wardrobe for a Jet Weekend. Their sophomore release, Clockworker, followed in 2003 on Two Sheds Music, meeting their goal of making a record that re-creates the atmosphere of late-'70s pop-punk. Since, the band has found their stride and a place alongside groups like the Natural History, the French Kicks and the Libertines."
Lee Valentine Smith, CREATIVE LOAFING, 09/2007
"Founding 'Tiques Blake Rainey and Blake Parris are back in action after pursuing separate paths for the past couple of years. Rainey, who has enjoyed a successful foray into the low-key Americana-folk field, and Parris, a key member of Sodajerk, are putting those roles on the back burner for the moment to concentrate on the revitalization of their punky, punchy Young Antiques, one of the best Atlanta rock bands of the past two decades. Kevin Charney of Sodajerk is on board as well, and the band is as vital as ever, apparently energized from the hiatus."
ATLANTA JOURNAL CONSTITUTION
"Young Antiques. An enduring, edgy trio trading in punk-infused, retro-minded pop rock whose members likely have Elvis Costello, the Replacements and Hüsker Dü on their iPods."
Tim Shea, STOMP AND STAMMER
"Blake Rainey and crew delivered a blistering set drawing from attempts to fuse literary sensibility into a an unpretentious basic rock formula, translating into a charged band inspired by a Blonde on Blonde Dylan and early Replacements whatsis. I haven't seen 'em since about four years ago and this set served as a pleasant reminder of what I've (and you've) been missing. Pitch-perfect were their sensitive yearnings encased in self-righteous indignation at the unfairness of tragedy one's life inevitably is forced to travail through. Minstrelship for the ages. "
FLAGPOLE
"Atlanta·s Young Antiques recognize the sometimes schizophrenic nature of rock and roll, as well as, in fact, the band·s own music. The Antiques blend rootsy rock with sharp pop hooks, plus pretty damn sharp lyricism, for a medicated goo that winds up somewhere between Steve Earle·s twangy roar and Elvis Costello·s cerebral stomp... with a little John Hiatt, Nick Lowe and Big Star thrown in for good measure. "
ATLANTA JOURNAL CONSTITUTION
"These guys reside where punk meets pop, in a neighborhood that includes folks such as Husker Du, the Jam and the Replacements, adding a touch of literate Southern charm to the community. "
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