Big Choice

Album Review

The success of the hit single "Disconnected" on Los Angeles radio station KROQ catapulted Face to Face to a new level of popularity, causing their 1995 release, Big Choice, to sell more than 100,000 copies — a first for the southern California punk band. "Disconnected" had appeared on their previous album Over It, but the band redid it for Big Choice, making it a bit heavier and adding a somewhat humorous exchange with a "record producer" about whether to include the song on the album because they didn't want to be labeled sell-outs. The conversation ends with the band declaring "there's no way in hell this song is going on this record" and then launching right into "Disconnected." Although "Disconnected" may be the standout track, the rest of the album still measures up. In the tradition of fellow punk revival bands Down by Law and Samiam, the 13 raucous tracks on Big Choice are catchy, energetic and bursting with cynical lyrics about being tired of dealing with people and their flaws. In "Velocity," vocalist Trever Keith spits out the lyrics "Tell me all about your favorite human being/Tell me everything about yourself" and later "So let me take a good look at your perfect life/So I know just exactly how I don't want mine." "Debt" has the resounding chorus of "I don't owe you anything." It's the perfect album for when you're in a bad mood and sick of people.