by Haley Cullingham
I miss The OC. I miss the tans, I miss the fights, I miss the thinly disguised commercialization of niche culture. I miss Mischa Barton’s wounded-face, and getting excited about seeing Olivia Wilde in boardshorts at Coachella. I miss the Chanel bags, and the pool-side tanning chairs. These are moments of my youth I will never get back. There was a fresh, exciting energy in the air in those days, and Everything All The Time is a Toronto band that is bringing that feeling back. The OC made it socially acceptable to fantasize that your life operated to a soundtrack of emo, swelling violins and indie rock and roll (which you were already doing anyway.) B.O.C (Before The OC), was it okay to halt a dorm room make-out session to re-start your iPod playlist? Who knows. (People who went to college before The OC, I would imagine). There are certain bands who gained exposure on the melodrama who are now permanently wedged in the hearts of pop culture, and Everything All The Time hearkens back to a lot of those musical fixtures. Were Seth Cohen still telling eager pretty year things what music they liked, the next song to play while Ryan and Marissa shared a tequila-soaked post-gunshot beachside kiss would be an Everything All The Time song. Their upbeat music, which is catchy and sunny with hints of punk, is the perfect backdrop to melodramatic should-we-shouldn’t-we flipflop-wearing summer romance, and pensive gazing at the shoreline. The band infuses their rock tracks with electro elements and stream-of-consciousness vocals. Their pop sound is something you haven’t heard in a while, and it’s refreshing. Sip your cerveza and throw this on your boombox on endless summer evenings.  

Everything All The Time plays The Drake Underground Thursday, July 17th @ 9 pm 

myspace.com/everythingallthetimeband