Reggie and the Full Effect is a confusing project. Reggie's debut album was 1998's Greatest Hits: 1984-1987-this was quickly followed by another oddly titled release, 2000's Promotional Copy.
These albums featured songs equally quirky in title and theme-\Fiona Apple, Kiss My Black Ass"" and ""Pick Up the Phone Master P"" leap to mind. Then there are the characters: Previous albums featured fictional frontman Reggie (later replaced by mustached fictional frontman Paco), Drunk Guy at the Get Up Kids show, and a slew of fictional niche bands.
Behind the project is actually former Coalesce drummer and current Get Up Kids keyboardist James Dewees. During some downtime between the two serious bands, Dewees created Reggie and the Full Effect as a solo pet project of sorts. The result has been a series of albums featuring comedic lyrics and skits-and a genre-bending sound that can go from synth-pop to punk to emocore (whatever that is) in mere moments.
Songs Not to Get Married To-the latest from Dewees-has the same schizophrenic sound but drops the fictitious act, allowing Dewees and the aftermath of his recent divorce to take more serious focus.
""What the Hell is Contempt?"" opens the album and fully prepares the listener for what's to come. The lyrics are standard contemporary emo-metal and Dewees' vocals quickly devolve into screams. Punchy guitars drive the song, but most notable are the shrill synth notes that come in. They allow Dewees to transition into ""Get Well Soon,"" a lighter alternative rock track with equally stagnant lyrics. The genre-shifting continues, most noticably between the scream-laden hardcore ""The Trooth"" and the light, synth-poppy sound of ""Take Me Home Please"" (a 30-second skit separating the tracks still can't smooth out the jarring sensation such a shift creates).
However, Songs does seem to get more and more personal as it goes on. While simple, the lyrical repetition of ""Thanks For the Misery"" is staggeringly effective. Dewees' haunting chorus floats over the lighter backdrop, singing ""I hope that things work out for you / I hope that he works out for you / I wish that we worked out for you / I know we'd never work for you."" The track is amazingly simple on paper, but Dewees' execution is outstanding.
The same cannot be said for the album as a whole. While Dewees' chameleon-like style is intriguing, very few of the tracks offer anything new or original within their genres. The hard rock and metal tracks feature driving guitar, heavy drums and screaming vocals; the alternative and pop tracks feature lighter delivering, lots of synth and catchy melodies, but only a few of them do anything new or interesting.
With the diverse arrangement of musical styles Dewees brings to the table, most people will really loathe at least a few tracks even if they love the rest. Much like Reggie and the Full Effect itself, Songs Not to Get Married To is an oddity-worth a listen, but far from fully effective.
