With a title like Acoustic EP: Seattle Sessions, one might be lead to think that they would be listening to an acoustic album, would they not? This was the first thing that entered my mind, general trend of acoustic albums to consist of well, acoustic guitars and a rawer manner of production. But I guess that maybe when The Classic Crime thinks of acoustic EPs they think of something different than I do. Softer would be the term, I think, that ought be employed here.The first acoustic strum does not occur until well after the minimalist intro of “Seattle” and even then does not take precedence over the other instruments; this is a whole band effort, not a stripped-down, awkward restructuring that most scenester bands end up offering. The marketing is slightly deceptive, of course, but you get the impression that perhaps there’s more to this than just a band writing ‘in a different style than usual.’ The Classic Crime is a band most widely known for their band of driving, fast-paced (and slightly derivative of Fall Out Boy) hipster rock that just released their debut album, Albatross.

And it’s not as if the band had a need to reinvent itself; that’s not something that most up and coming bands with a well-received debut album feel the need to do, but apparently TCC felt the need. Though the packaging and title are a bit deceptive one is glad that they decided not to fall into the “oh we’re such a sensitive band now!” cliché. My personal theory is that this is the direction that the band wanted to go to begin with but is a bit hesitant about what the reception will be. The only songs that they really commit to playing acoustically besides “The Test” or on the last half of the EP, and consist mostly of unremarkable ballads.

“Seattle” is an new step for the band, with its open chords subdued nature but stays within the frame of comfortable familiarity, shifting to a stop-start bridge formula that the band is known for. “Blindfolded” is a lo-fi rocker with quirky verses that sound intentionally mellow-definitely not standard acoustic fare.  Finally, a song called “The Test” comes across that sounds like the band who wrote Albatross-yet at the same time are the most unashamedly barren-and the results are the most listenable of anything on the album, with its floating lead guitar and foreboding tale of the open road. The song would make a great rock song, but is beautiful as it is.

The last half of the EP dips into a bit of a rut, vocalist Matt McDonald relying too much on lines recycled from past songs and from Albatross. “The Drink In My Hand” is supposedly a live track, but I listened to it nearly three times before I realized it. “When The Time Comes” contains a nifty line, however: “When the time comes / put my feet in the water / it’s not as warm as I expect / will I go down like a preacher’s son / or will I go down like a world-war vet?”

As a career move, Seattle Sessions may be a bit of a head -scratcher, but I’m not complaining. There are several diamonds in the rough here, and while The Classic Crime may not be the most innovative songwriters in the entire industry, they do have a knack for atmosphere and a good ear for catchiness. It will be interesting to see what how their next album turns out.

Check out TCC on myspace: www.myspace.com/theclassiccrime