On their appropriately titled debut LP, Youth, Citizen unsurprisingly addresses coming-of-age angst – typical fodder for most young, earnest pop punk bands – yet somehow they accomplish it without sounding stale or cliche.
Waiting For The Dawn can go one of two ways: shuffled in with your summer CD collection to be blasted while driving down the highway, or excavated for a vastly deeper meaning. The album is conscientious in its commentary; always offering nuggets of wisdom and fresh ways to revamp your worldview for the brighter.
Satori is an epic of an album spanning the depths of human emotion. The lyrics are compelling, the melodies are complex but catchy, and the musicianship displays pure talent throughout.
Disclaimer: Whenever, If Ever is a love/hate record. If you “get it,†you will be completely floored by its use of vast atmospheric textures and timbres, as well as its nostalgia factor. If you don’t, it will be a whiny, fragmented, enigmatic record that will be a struggle to listen to.
Real Friends are one of those bands who, although their musical repertoire is far from extensive, have yet to put out a bad song. Their latest EP Put Yourself Back Together is no exception – but there’s no sign of the band pushing their limits or trying something new.
There’s familiar, comfortable classic rock, and then there’s edgy and energetic Bree, who brings a sharp feminine twist to the tried and true style of rock and roll. She sings with confidence and attitude, and adds an element of fierceness as bright as her red lipstick and flying V guitar.
After the success of their debut full-length last year, Misser have established themselves as an important component of the rising indie pop punk scene. The Distancing EP offers yet another couple songs for fans to sink their teeth into, as well as coming off as another collection of stories that the band needed to get off their chest.
With classic-sounding guitar, easygoing vocals and lyrics, and undeniably catchy melodies, Abandon Kansas’s A Midwest Summer easily attracts any straightforward rock palate while embodying the feel of the vibrant and hot summers inherent to the Midwest United States.
The range present in Man Overboard’s third full-length Heart Attack epitomizes the fluidity of the term “pop punk,†making the album a must-have for anyone that considers themselves a fan of the genre.
With a sound that calls to mind the likes of The Black Keys, The White Stripes, and Kasabian, Orthodox is one of those records that is meant to be heard live in the middle of a rowdy crowd on a hot Saturday night in some too-cramped club.
