"Formed in the towering shadow of Hüsker Dü and the Replacements and a few years behind Soul Asylum, the Magnolias were doomed to be Minneapolis' scruffy also-rans, the band that got left behind when everyone else graduated to the big leagues. And while the revolving-lineup group never developed a national profile anywhere near the scale of those other bands, singer/guitarist John Freeman has persevered, making music to be properly proud of...."
"...Off the Hook, played with taut, scrabbly precision by returning drummer Tom Cook, super bassist Caleb Palmiter and guitarist Kent Militzer, the best songs of Freeman's life portray a dispirited romantic avoiding anger and bitterness by discharging his emotional burdens into sensitive, tuneful, speedy rock'n'roll. Rarely has punk sounded such a winsome note. For an artless singer, Freeman's voice is incredibly expressive; carried along on bracing rhythm-guitar riffs woven with pretty lead figures, his wry lyrics and catchy hooks help Off the Hook rabbit-punch back at disappointment with a poker face and the certainty of a better day coming. "When you ask me how I'm doing / Do you really want to know? / And I'm lying when I tell you I'm fine / I'm really kinda low / But I put on a smile / If only for a while / But when I'm not up to giving / And when I'm not up to living / I think of tomorrow." Freeman's world here is fraught with ambivalence. "Hello or Goodbye" attempts to resolve a bi-polar relationship; in "Matter of Time," a lover is heading out west, and Freeman balances his disdain for the smog and sure-to-break dreams of Los Angeles with cocky hope for her return. Chalking up eleven fine originals and a bristling cover of Chris Osgood's perplexed "Complicated Fun" — all inside 40 minutes — Off the Hook is everything a punk-pop record should be...." Trouser Press.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l61p5ZWH92U
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