Loses Control is the second and final studio album by American rock bandHey Mercedes. It was recorded in 2003, shortly before the band broke up. Afterwards, lead vocalist and guitarist Bob Nanna began recording again under his solo outfit The City on Film, which led to an album released on Grand Theft Autumn Records titled In Formal Introduction in 2005. This is the same record label that also released Hey Mercedes' final EP, Unorchestrated, that same year.
Background and production
The band announced the departure of guitarist Mark Dawursk in February 2002; his role was temporarily filled by Shawn O'Brien. In May, Michael Shumaker of Sheilbound was announced as their new guitarist, and it was revealed they were working on new material. In February and March 2003, the band embarked on a headlining US tour with support from Armor for Sleep, Breaking Pangaea and Panic in Detroit. On February 18, the band revamped their website to promote their second album Loses Control, which was due for release towards the end of the year. Pre-production was done at Q Division in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Loses Control was recorded in April and May 2003 at Camp Street Studios, also in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with producers Sean Slade and Paul Q. Kolderie. They both acted as engineers with assistance from Adam Taylor, while Matt Beaudoin handled editing. Slade and Kolderie mixed the recordings at Camp Street, before they were mastered by Emily Lazar at The Lodge in New York City.
Composition
Loses Control has been described as an indie rock, pop punk and power pop release, which shifted away from the group's earlier emo stylings. It was compared to the likes of Something to Write Home About by the Get Up Kids, Bleed American by Jimmy Eat World, and Guided by Voices. The band utilized bigger and thicker sounding guitars for the record. Nanna's vocals are double-tracked for the majority of the album, drawing a comparison to Alkaline Trio frontman Matt Skiba on that band's Good Mourning album. The opening track "Quality Revenge at Last" it includes instances of staccato and palm-muted guitar parts. The chorus section discuses late-night car journeys through the suburbs of Illinois. "Playing Your Song" was reminiscent of Smile, and is followed by the New Romantic-indebted "Knowing When to Stop". "Unorchestrated" and "Police Police Me", both slow-tempo tracks, bookend "Lashing Out", which talks about the aggression inside everyone. The closing track "Go on Drone" details an evening spent at a bar between a couple.
Release
On July 23, 2003, an MP3 of "Quality Revenge at Last" was posted online. In August and September, the group embarked on a co-headlining national US tour with Sense Field. They were supported by Damone and Soundtrak. On August 20, "It's Been a Blast" and "Knowing When to Stop" were posted online. Though Loses Control was planned for release on September 2, it was eventually released on October 7 through Vagrant. The band was due to appear on the CMJ tour in November, however, due to complications, the band instead went on a headlining North American trek in November and December, dubbed Hurry Up Offense Tour. The first half of the dates were supported by JamisonParker, Jet by Day, the remainder was supported by Hopesfall, Bear vs. Shark, Haste and Jude the Obscure. A split single with Favez was released through UK label Sound Fiction on November 19, featuring the Hey Mercedes tracks "Quality Revenge at Last" and "Warm Chords". The music video for "Quality Revenge at Last" premiered on MTV.com on November 24, directed by Matt Barry and Maureen Egan. Nanna said they wished to make a "fun, non-dramatic" visual counterpart to the track's upbeat nature. It was filmed in a day and features the band going through a car wash; as a result of this, the members contracted pneumonia. In February 2004, the group went on tour with Wheat; partway through it their touring van broken down, resulting in them dropping off two shows. In March, the band toured with the Early November, Spitalfield and Limbeck, leading up to a support slot for Saves the Day and Grandaddy on their co-headlining tour in March and April. When one of the other support acts, the Fire Theft, dropped off the tour, Hey Mercedes were given a longer set time. In May, Nanna went on a solo tour; Nanna, Atkinson and Bell reunited Braid for some shows between May and July. In October, Hey Mercedes went on a tour of Europe, before taking time off. On January 20, 2005, the band announced they would be breaking up; they later played their final show in April. Outtakes and demos from the album's sessions were released on the Unorchestrated EP in May through independent label Grand Theft Autumn.
Reception
By July 2004, it had sold around 13,000 copies. Loses Control received generally positive reviews from music critics.
