Distances Split White 7″

Pop/punk is universal and this split 7″ between The Wonder Years and All Or Nothing is a testament to that. The Wonder Years are from Philly, PA and All Or Nothing hail from the UK but both bands play pop/punk, albeit different shades of the genre.

We’ll start with the bad news. All Or Nothing’s three songs fall high on the pop scale and that’s not the kind I tend to go for usually. Think Taking Back Sunday more than anything else. The guy’s vocals are a bit too high pitched to take seriously even for this style. Granted the band has some pop chops but something is missing here. It just all feels a bit empty honestly.

Now, on to the good news! This is my second experience with The Wonder Years and I must admit I am floored by their progress. The band has grown leaps and bounds from their debut which sounded like a more generic poppy version of Set Your Goals. On these two songs the band seems to be finding a personality of their own. The silliness of the band’s early material is missing as they ditch the breakdowns in favor of a more refined pop approach. Granted this can still be classified as pop/punk but it’s remarkably well done and not in the least bit generic. Falling more in line with a band like Motion City Soundtrack, The Wonder Years show a maturation that make this split most definitely worth the price of admission.

Label: No Sleep