Telling On Trixie - Ugly, Broke & Sober Review

Posted by Alistair McGeorge on 07.12.2009

Telling On Trixie return with their second album, the independently released Ugly, Broke & Sober. The band will be hoping to grow their fan-base. With their pop-rock-alternative sound, will this give them the break they want or maybe deserve?

This is my introduction to Telling On Trixie, and so I wasn’t exactly sure what I should expect. I’d heard they were an indie-style, pop-rock band comparable to The All American Rejects, but I definitely wasn’t expecting what I got from this album. Is that a good or a bad thing? Read on to find out!



1. Shooting in 60
2. Crash Me Up
3. Mad About You
4. A.N.F.O.
5. Eden (Take A Bite)
6. The Deepest Dive
7. Ugly, Broke & Sober
8. Your Silence (Band Version)
9. Late So Tired
10. Steps to the Throne

Telling On Trixie- Ugly, Broke & Sober

Right from the get-go, this album caught my attention. The simple beginning of the opening song, Derek Nicoletto’s vocals and just how catchy it all sounds had me stopping everything I was doing during the first listen to give it my full attention (I usually give an album an “in the background listen” before I properly listen to it). The chorus is powerful and soaring, and will be one of the songs I hope to remind me of this summer. This idea of ‘summer anthems’ is really a way I would describe this album. Whether it ends up how it deserves to or not, this album should be the soundtrack to Summer ’09.

“Crash Me Up” is another chilled out, pop-rock song that just works. It actually reminded me, for some reason, of the Stereophonics’ “Have A Nice Day”. It’s not that it sounds the same, it’s just the same sort of relaxing, catchy driving anthem that would be perfect for blasting out on a long drive. The acoustic guitars give a song a very nice feel against the electric guitars and piano, and it just all combines to make another great song. By the time this track finished, this was already becoming one of my favorite recent albums, and we’re only two tracks in!

Up next is one of my favorite songs on the album, and it’s actually a Belinda Carlisle cover. I didn’t realize this when I first heard “Mad About You”, which shows that this is a band that has a distinct sound that can make any song their own. I want to say at this point, I’m not trying to over-hype this album with hyperbole- I just genuinely do think it’s that fantastic. The solo in this song is perfect, seemingly coming out of nowhere and showing that this band can really make it.

What follows is a great riff leading into one of the album’s strongest songs. On “A.N.F.O.”, Nicoletto’s vocals are once again brilliant, and the music itself fits perfectly with the lyrics. Another song that could be part of any soundtrack to the summer, it’s different enough from the first three songs to show that the band has some diversity past the pop-rock.

I’m almost getting as tired of saying this as you probably are after reading it, but “Eden (Take A Bite)” is another strong song that stacks up as one of my favorites. The chorus seems incredibly emotional, with the soaring line of ‘Go on and take a bite’ actually sending a shiver down my spine. It’s hard to explain why I like this album so much, but with songs like this and the equally beautiful “The Deepest Dive”, I’m finding it hard to complain.

“Ugly, Broke & Sober” is more of a pop-punk song, compared to the rest of the album at least. Once again, it’s a great pop track with some good riffs, solid vocals and a feel-good chorus consisting of just the line “It’s gonna be alright”. On a first listen, Telling On Trixie are a simple band following a fairly simple formula, but everything seems to click. “Your Silence” is a departure from the rest of the album, with a fairly heavy riff and pounding drums, but I’ll be honest and say I think it’s one of the weaker songs here.

The following songs couldn’t be any more different; chilled, calm and driven by a beautiful acoustic-based chorus. By the end of album-closer “Step to the Throne”, I really didn’t have many complaints. The last track and “Your Silence” were the weaker tracks on Ugly, Broke & Sober, and for some the fact that most of the songs are pop-punk, feel-good tunes and not much more might turn some people off. As a fan of heavier music, however, I can say honestly that I thoroughly enjoyed it.

The 411: I went into this unsure what to expect from Telling On Trixie. However, by the time the album came to an end, I found myself wishing for a longer album.. Despite only being 10 tracks, there wasn’t a bad song on here, and it’s disappointing that more people won’t get to hear this. I realize it won’t be for everyone, and I was going to rate it as a nine if it wasn’t for that fact. I really wanted to rate this higher, because I haven’t heard anything this good in a very long time.

Final Score:  8.5   [ Very Good ]