Tag Archive for pop-punk

When some people think of Reno, Nevada, the popular Comedy Central show Reno 911 comes to mind. Others envision a city that sits in a high desert valley at the foot of the Sierras. Now the city has a new distinction. Reno’s pop-punk group Wayward shines brighter than the lights on the Vegas strip. As noted by Anthony Raneri from Bayside and Kelvin Cruz of A Thorn For Every Heart, Wayward produces vocal melodies that will catch anyone’s ear, as well as strong guitar riffs (not to mention great solos) and driving beats and bass. This is a band that everyone should definitely keep an eye on. With their new album in the works through Justin Powell Productions, the Nevada scene will definitely benefit from having such a hard working (not to mention close-knit) band. Be sure to check out their music at www.myspace.com/waywardmusic and leave them some love. I promise you, you will not be disappointed.

Without further ado, iRock is proud to feature WAYWARD as the “Artist of the Week”. Check out the Q&A with Chris of Wayward below.
Enjoy!

Continue reading ‘iRock: Q&A With Wayward’

Single Serving Friends

No strangers to the art of reference, Single Serving Friends have been known to double dip into film when it comes to the naming of things. From Fight Club to There Will Be Blood, the Milwaukee band packages their songs with references to provocative cinema, but rarely flip the script when it comes to their own arrangements. Frenetic pop-punk with thundering drums, chugging guitars and dissonant hooks is the modus operandi. Add to that an earnest female frontwoman, and you have a band that falls somewhere between Paramore and Pretty Girls Make Graves. But the problem with Single Serving Friends isn’t that it’s derivative, it’s that the compositions are openly formulaic. Angular guitars deliver terse chord progressions, chug with an urgency and inevitably lunge into a break. The notes may change from track to track but the effect doesn’t. Look, polyrhythmic, multi-part, hooky rock songs are a lot of fun, but you gotta switch it up. The kids might drink your milkshake the first time, but they may not ask for seconds.

They may want to check the date on their ticket stubs: Chasing Canadia

There comes a point in listening to Chasing Canadia when you start to suspect that they may be a little too squeaky clean. Maybe it’s that their bio speaks of deep friendships and trust bonds. Maybe it’s that the chorus to one of their songs is, “I find the good of the world in you / And you bring out the best in me.” But, just as your cynical soul is crying out for you to abort, singer Christina Harlow opens the next track by blurting out “F**k you and all your friends.” Ah, relief.

Chasing Canadia spins pop-punk confection with blasts of vinegar. The Indiana five-piece bears more than just a passing resemblance to Paramore, mostly due to Harlow’s eerily similar vocals and looks. On “When the Good Stays In,” she declares “2009 was mine,” as wiry guitars stutter and pulse and the drum kit gets a sound beating. The acoustic ballad “Tides” reveals not only the band’s softer side, but some wiser lyrical content. “It occurred to me that the reason I set sea / Is cause sometimes I have to hurt to feel relief.”  Maybe there’s nothing revolutionary about the music, but a hook’s a hook, and Chasing Canadia’s guitar-driven melodies have plenty of them. Let’s hope 2010 is theirs as well.

So Happy Together: Pinboys

If music is a universal language, then pop-punk is global slang— snappy, direct and favored by the young. Pinboys, a rock quartet from Denmark, deliver pop-punk nuggets that require no translation. The group features both female and male singers: the first a breathy femme fatale and the second an earnest emo rocker who injects the songs with jolts of urgency.

Take, for instance, “Murder,” a playful and slinky romp where singer Anne Kalstrub’s seductive coos drive co-singer Jakob Thalund to strident wails. The ballad “Crashing Cars” is a lesson in economy; acoustic guitar, vocals and kick drum combine to create a sweet (maybe even saccharine) and evocative little melody.

Pinboys’ arrangements don’t reinvent any wheels — guitars, bass and drums deliver simple hooks, but leave the spotlight on emotive vocal performances. If you prefer your music with lots of bells and whistles, keep looking. But if you’re content with simple and catchy pop punk that tickles the id, Pinboys speak your language.

Jersey Boys: The Years Gone By

Every musician chases his or her own particular muse. For rappers, it’s verbal dexterity, the gift of flow. For funk/soul purists, it’s the groove. And for the legions of pop-punks out there, it’s hooks. Irresistibly kinetic, irrefutably catchy hooks.

Like every pop-punk band, The Years Gone By focus their songwriting around those powerful chord progressions that define a song. They fill in the gaps with the usual trappings: snotty, call-and-response vocals; wiry and careening guitars; drums and bass driving at breakneck speeds. The strident “Tell Someone Else I Don’t Care” is three minutes of Sturm und Drang, Jersey-style. Guitars scribble across a wash of distortion and crashing cymbals while singer Nickolas Madore leads the fray with a nasally sing-along chorus. “Tear Down the Stars” is a technically precise, if forgettable, ballad that’s perfect for slow-dancing in a suburban high school gym. Look, when you’re a pop-punk band, you gotta keep the teens happy. And in that regard, The Years Gone By pass with flying colors.