Kudos!





For "The Returnables" (Dirtnap 2006):

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"Dirtnap keeps cranking out high quality punk music that usually has a twisted pop angle nestled in there somewhere. This band sadly ended last July when guitarist John Glick was killed (along with Silkworm’s Michael Dahlquist and at least one other musician) in an auto accident. A damn shame as well cos’ this band had lots of promise. Their main influence was the Undertones (apparently John was in an Undertones cover band at one point) and if you dig this sort of garagey power-pop as much as I do then this will tickle that sweet spot in your brain that weed never seems to reach anymore. 'What Would Mother Say?' and 'Teenage Imposters' both blast out of the gate with sirens a blazin’ while 'Back in my Room' was a mid-tempo chunker. The last 3 songs are live and the recording are isn’t bad , including the final song which is a Wedding Present cover ('Dare'). A sad end to the great promise of a fine band." • indiepages.com
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"With the suss and flair of the Buzzcocks meeting the Smiths head-on in an arm-wrestling pop punk Olympics, these buzzsawing, vinegar tart songs make perfect sense in a world jaded by commerce and dumbed down love. Released posthumously after the untimely death of Bobby James, who bursts on this CD’s guitar and vocals, these tuneful feelings could be scratch and sniff whiffs of love lost and musical friendship blown to bits by foaming furious fate. By far one of the most humming, 1979ish, unadorned by emo bands to emerge from the broken lip of Chicago, it’s no wonder that both Ken from Dirtnap and Jeff Pezzati of Naked Raygun saw fit to tuck these lads under their label belts. There is something uncanny at work here, a kind of wit and interplay and harmonizing that feels like swirling synergy between folks who’ve absorbed way too much Only Ones, Dickies, and the Zeroes, as if every ‘45 that adorned your wall has ended up being scrunched and melted down between their amplifiers and drum set. The live tracks, like 'End of the World' and 'Last to Know,' which bears heavy witness to a Velvet Underground obsession, are rough’n’ready sound verite style, and it’s nice to know that their fomented studio kicks were sustainable live, as the drinks clink and spill. Albeit short, this is by no means thrifty: it’s full of flowering passions, knee-deep looks back not in anger but wholesale splendor and finesse at a time when frank city innocence was inoculated against the metal machinations and inertia of the 1980s...Too bad so much was lost so fast." • Left of the Dial

For "Unrequited Hits" (Jettison Music 2003):

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"Power pop and what used to be called garage rock bleed together to wonderful effect in Unrequited Hits, the debut album by the Returnables, a Chicago-based quartet which formed in Madison, Wisconsin, on former Naked Raygun leader Jeff Pezzati’s label. (He executive produced and played piano on one track.) Stirring melodies, breathless rhythms and evident knowledge of a wide variety of forbears set up songs that don’t stint on raucous power or silly high school lyrics (“She Throws Punches,” “Your Teenage Friends,” “Bubblegum” — it makes perfect sense that girls’ names figure in the titles of four songs here) but also sparkle with tuneful wit, sharp hooks and fine club-honed playing. (And kudos for including “Monica,” a previously unrecorded song written by former Green/Lilacs bassist Ken Kurson.) The spectrum on Unrequited Hits runs from the Buzzcocks to the Elvis Brothers to the Smugglers, all more in terms of feel and attitude than derivation. Basically, bassist Reggie Lee Ray (Bran Harvey), drummer Arturo Lee Ray (Art Kubin) and guitarists Bobby James Lee Ray (John Glick) and Frankie Lee Ray (Jonathan Ben-Isvy) — all sing and write — understand that memorable pop requires discipline and attention to detail, but exciting rock demands headlong carelessness. And they uphold both ends. A zillion bands have donned this coat, but few have worn it so smartly." • Trouser Press
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"The lyrics are funny-goofy like The Ramones: “She threw a punch/And stole my lunch/And that’s how/I knew she was the one for me.” But the twin guitar wall of rock ‘n’ roll is more Radio Birdman, with a little Saints and Jeff Pezzati’s old band Naked Raygun – he’s the label head, executive producer and pianist on one track – if they all liked AM pop in the ‘60s more. Because the songs themselves are power-pop, closer to early Hoodoo Gurus, Let’s Active, Monkees, Flamin’ Groovies and Chi-town forerunners Green, than the battalions of sound-alike punk acts out there desperately trying to rip off the Descendents without any of their winsome charm. The Returnables make no pretense of the fact they like stuff that rocks without losing any innocence, and so their not-too-serious lyrics try to capture the humor of first crush/blush of discovering the opposite sex as teenagers, and fumbling around on how to deal with/relate to/get them without a map of experience. “I’m on the CTA/And it smells like love/There’s my girlfriend on the platform/What’s she thinking of?/I don’t know, I don’t care/I’ve got bubblegum in my hair” is rarely set to music that has such a thick but clean guitar sound. But like the girlfriend in question, who probably just laughed at the dork and invited him out for ice cream, it’s hard not to fall for these guys. If they don’t want to take of their letter-sweater for now, don’t make them. Not while they’re rockin’." • The Big Takeover
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"You've really gotta hand it to Jeff Pezzati; the ex-Naked Raygun frontman has, in a relatively short time, stocked his Jettison Music imprint with a low-key yet impressive roster of loyal Raygun disciples. While he's done quite a good job stacking the shelves, his signing of rising Chicago quartet The Returnables just might be his most impressive A&R outing yet. Unrequited Hits, the group's second long-player, is a stirring sonic stew that's heavy on '50s doo-wop harmonies, '80s power-pop riffs and '70s punk attitude. There's no denying that their delivery is a bit sloppy, but with tunes as utterly infectious as the sugar-pop bomb 'Bubblegum' and the charming/chiming 'Your Teenage Friends', who really cares? Like so many bands of their ilk, the Returnables always seem to sound like they're paying homage to their heroes; 'Run, Run, Run' could very well be a Shoes outtake, the snotty 'Gentlemen Prefer them Gone' is positively Buzzcocks-y, and 'Hey, Alice!' is the band's tribute to their forefathers, the aforementioned Naked Raygun. No, the Returnables aren't exactly setting the world ablaze, but if they're able to keep writing songs this good, it won't be too much longer that their hits go unrequited." • Splendid
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"This CD's cover caught my eye. It has a couple of 7" boxes opened with a Returnables single pulled out. What I noticed was the two records in the front of each box: The Registrators TV HELL and the Ramones great Norton single (I also think I can see the first Buzzcocks single). They have the right bands to draw from, but does it live up? Each track pulls out a great Buzzcocks flavor, and I am sure that the members of the Returnables must own a few Elvis Costello records. I am a sucker for bass lines that walk all over the place and toms that pound in the chorus. I have a feeling I will really like this a lot after I have listened to it repeatedly. No fast tracks on this one, but there are lots of singalong choruses with all members adding vocals. The production is layered with extra pieces here and there that enoughught to get them out of the generic cut-out bin." • Punk Planet
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"The Returnables live in a world where the psychedelic ’60s and hip-hop never happened. In fact, many of the songs on their second release, Unrequited Hits, would have been hits in 1965 and 1979. Their snappy, sloppy sing-along rock songs about girls were meant to be released as 45 singles with color sleeves scattered on the bedroom floors of teenage girls. Possibly the most handsome band in America, this four-piece is every inch an American band; everyone in the group writes songs and sings lead. Songs like 'Monica,' 'Girl From Eau Claire,' 'Tomoko' and 'Julie, Did I?' make you want play them over and over again while you harmonize along with the choruses. The Returnables bridge the gap between the Hollies (before they moved to the U.S.) and the Buzzcocks and pick up where the Undertones left off. That’s a pretty good place to start when it comes to rock ’n’ roll. A landmark disc in any era." • Sacramento News & Review
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"These four cool cats play '70s style pop with a bit of punk thrown in for good measure. It's really an irresistible mix as the melodies are thick and hard to resist. Tracks such as 'Monica' and 'Julie, Did I?' will be stuck in your head for hours. Based on song titles, it sounds like these guys really get around; aside from the aforementioned girls-in-songs, there's also 'Hey, Alice!' and the 'Girl From Eau Claire.'" • Impact Press
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"The Returnables are a great pop-punk band from Chicago that has neat '77-sounding guitars and production, shades of 60's garage-pop, and bar-rock mid-tempo speed and attitude. I don't know much about this band, but they've got a great sound and they're worth looking into." • Read Magazine
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"We all love a good pop album from time to time; something so sickeningly sweet that it reminds us that love sucks, but thank God that we at least don't have crushes like we did in junior high. The Returnables rank up with The Queers and Screeching Weasel when it comes to bubble-gum and harmonies. They also are great musicians who can really write and play some great bubble-gum punk..." • Siouxland

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