Vinyl Color: blue and orange pinwheel. Originally released in 2019, Routine Maintenance, the second full-length (& second in the Aaron West trilogy) from Dan Campbell (frontman of Philadelphia pop punk legends, The Wonder Years), is a character study conducted through music. Picking up where the first installment of the trilogy, 2013's We Don't Have Each Other, leaves off, the album follows Brooklyn-native Aaron West as he formed his band (The Roaring Twenties) & travels across America, playing shows & meeting folks along the way. The album plays like a slice of life glimpse at America & a haunting interpretation of one's purpose in it. According to writer Hanif Abdurraqib, Routine Maintenance is the richest and most layered of the Aaron West albums from a standpoint of sound. With the final installment of the trilogy and a new tour on the way in 2024, Routine Maintenance is the bridge between the freshness of hurt & despair & the acceptance of suffering and recognition of one's flaws and responsibilities in the world.
