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• Artist: The Mall
  
• Album: (Emergency at the Everyday)
  
• Year: 2006
  
• Why I picked it up: Artwork was done in ink, so I figured it might be some sort of indie rock.

The Mall is a curiously-named band with two distinguishing characteristics. The first and worst is the singer's highly-distorted vocals. It doesn't sound so much like a well-distorted sound as it does the singer standing too close to the microphone. Maybe he was standing too close to drown out the other patrons at the mall? Fortunately, the second aspect partly salvages the nineteen-minute album: the band's synthesizer technique. It's catchy, it's fun, and it sounds vaguely like an early 8-bit Nintendo chiptune. Sadly the synth can't save the album entirely, but those with strong resistance to grating vocals will probably find something to like.

(Oh, and if you're wondering about the title, it's the name of the closing track.)

• Standout track: A Question of Balance
  
• MySpace: The Mall
  
• How much I would've paid: $0
  
• Rating: 2/5