Scout :: "So Close"

If 1994 were still alive today it would be scratching lottery tickets, voting in the coming Presidential election and buying unfiltered Lucky Strikes to go with pornography and the ability to be drafted in the next terrifying World War. It would be a walking, talking, legal adult. But on Scout's "So Close", a song that could easily pass for an entry on the aforementioned calendar year's Reality Bites movie soundtrack, it feels like no time has passed at all. That year never got old, never thought hard thoughts or sent in, somewhat reluctantly, its Selective Service registration card. In fairness, Scout has been around awhile themselves, this long player, All Those Relays marks the first new material from the band since 2003. "So Close" is a glimmering slice of 90s girl-rock, like a darker version of Juliana Hatfield's "Spin The Bottle" with better production value. The most durable lyric on Scout's return, "Don't let the door hit you in the ass/I won't be looking back", a statement of relationship independence that couldn't be further from the band's methodology, rooted so solidly and enthusiastically in the past.