It's A King Thing

"Wine and Ponies"

by John Vettese

Like adolescence, the transition from emo-punk to power pop is nothing if not awkward. When SoJersey combo It's A King Thing made the move on its recent Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo. — a joke only a linguist could love — it fumbled like Michael Cera in that movie. Songwriting is heart-on-the-sleeve with decreased bite, making the album's lows unbearably saccharine and sappy. Then again, at its best, King Thing ascends to absurd levels of Fountains of Wayne-style catchiness. Cue the jangly "Wine and Ponies." It's a breezy midtempo number punctuated by a choral "bop bop" clip and a tuneful guitar lead; simple, pointed and fun. The lyrics are less lovelorn letters than passing thoughts in the face of loss. "I'll be here in the morning/ And you won't ever hear me snoring." In this we see hints of moving on; perhaps it will continue on a broader scale when they get to album three.