120 on SAL contributor Jeff Takacs has a podcast called Rocket Fuel that you should definitely be checking out! The new episode is up, #35 to be exact. On this episode Jeff has an interview with Tim from The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, a contest with Paper + Plastick and tunes from Alkaline Trio, The Wonder Years, Glossary, Tim Barry and much more on it. You can see the full tracklisting and more details on the Rocket Fuel site.
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
