Soft Targets - Soft Targets Must Be Destroyed CD LP

Soft Targets

When we reviewed Soft Targets’ 2007 release, We Hate You Soft Targets, we wrote the band was “simple, straightforward pop rock.” Soft Targets Must Be Destroyed! is similarly rife with dynamic chord progressions, syncopation, and, in some songs, a wall of sound. One major difference from the band’s last record is the production of the recording—Destroyed sounds fuller and more professional. The album’s best song is “Gotta Let You Go,” a sentimental piece whose universal subject matter should strike a chord with anyone who’s ever really cared about somebody else.—Demo Magazine

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Unless I am remembering incorrectly, there was a time ('78 or '79 maybe?) when major labels started placing full-page ads in music magazines that featured both their mainstream acts (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, perhaps) and newer punk or new wave bands (like the Clash, and, yes I know they weren't on the same label) Listening to this Soft Targets CD reminded me of these ads and that era in music. Punk and Classic rock existed as separate entities, but there was an overriding feeling that was created by the mixture of genres. There are some sonic traces of both cited bands on Soft Targets Must Be Destroyed, but it is the manifestation of the spirit of the late 70s/early 80s that makes this record an exciting modern document.—Illinois Entertainer

Soft Targets is a rock n roll band from Chicago. Note that I'm specifically using the term 'rock n roll and not "indie rock." These guys are certainly independent, but their songs are full of big guitars, big pop hooks and, best of all, big endings (big endings are totally rad! -ed). Their sound is more similar to The Smithereens or Urge Overkill than to any of the shaggy blog rock bands pouring out of Brooklyn. And like any good rock band, they've been through about a thousand line-up changes since they formed in 2005, which makes their solid, cohesive sound even more impressive.—Tough Customer