Press

"...From the first effected chord struck in the album's opener, "Que Sera Sera", to the moment in "Confetti" where the cacophony suddenly gives way to acoustic strumming, the Life and Times offer listeners a thrilling cinematic journey through their meticulously constructed world of sound." Pitchfork 6.9

"...The Kansas City, Missouri band’s sophomore full-length is a great combination of post-rock grandeur, expansive indie, and hard-hitting rock....Given its nature, Tragic Boogie is not, however, a record that is just a compilation of tracks, with some standouts, and some low-lights.  Instead, the album is really a whole project, beginning to end, lying in the high atmosphere, while staying rooted to the ground." QRO Magazine 7.8

"...Up to this point, everything The Life and Times has released has been good, revealing flashes of brilliance every now and again. On Tragic Boogie, they've followed through on the promise of the sprawling, adventurous album that they've been building toward, and one that will rattle your bones, at that." TrebleZine - Album of the Week

" In between records the band constructed their own studio that allowed them the sort of time to experiment with their sound and see through every creative thought they could have possibly had. The result is a record that sounds fully realized; swelling with the type of intricacies that only months of work and attention could have produced." Built On a Weak Spot

AP Magazines Recommends - Feature on The Life and Times - March '09

"...drummer, Chris Metcalf...played like fucking Dr. Octopus, augmenting their muscular, driving shoegaze-inspired rock songs with the kind of playing you expect to see from John Bonham or some robot designed by Honda. Needless to say, when I saw they were playing again, headlining this time, in support of their second full-length, Tragic Boogie, I might have peed a little bit."  Live DC

"...Tragic Boogie showcases a dozen tracks that were handled with painstaking care and obsessive/compulsive precision. Epley managed to build upon the base he created with Shiner and move his music in a direction that incorporates delectable tidbits from both Shiner’s past and Epley’s present. The result is a second full length album that will most certainly lead indie rock into the future." Amplifier Magazine

"...this is a band that navigates the trickiest of processes and feats: It delivers both the unexpected and the familiar. Songs go in directions that aren’t foreseen but that feel natural and comfortable, once you reach their destinations." Kansas City Star

"If you've ever listened to a Sigur Rós record and wished that they'd just rock out already, then Tragic Boogie is your joint. And it's hoped that it'll also be the record that puts the Life and Times in the short-list company of the bands they revere." The Pitch

"They're characterized by impressive depth of field, dizzying changes in sonic emphasis and a bracing disregard for hierarchal arrangements. Instruments switch roles, rhythm takes the lead, everything bleeds into everything else and the downshifts are just as thrilling as the crescendos." Blurt Magazine