In the past I’ve mentioned that writing reviews has its perks, like getting releases early and being introduced to bands that you might never discover on your own, but it has also has a few downsides, one of which is the possible oversaturation of one specific genre. Sadly today’s review is one of these cases for me…and it breaks my heart in a way, since Six Time Champion have everything that is needed to create amazing pop punk, as they prove with their EP Expecting Honesty!
As mentioned above, the Brighton-based quintet delivers five energy-laden tracks that are spot-on when it comes to pop punk. Everything is here: driving drums that are the perfect backdrop for the melodic guitar parts as well as the happy-angsty, for lack of a better word, atmosphere that is ever-present in their sound. There is no doubt that these blokes are talented musicians with a well-developed sense of good songwriting but, for me personally, it’s just not enough…more on that in a bit.
Throughout the twenty-minutes the vocalist presents a wide range of styles, including clean vocals and screams, and complements the instruments perfectly. The same goes for the occasional gang shouts, which fit the parts they’re used in like a glove. Lyrically, it’s about the life on the road, broken hearts and various other typical topics, with quite a few catchy lines. No complaints there.
Now, you might ask yourself why Expecting Honesty doesn’t quite hit home for me and, even though it pisses me off to say this, the answer is easy: I’ve heard it all before. This does not mean that STC are a run-off-the-mill band, quite the contrary actually, but there were no major “a-ha!” moments for me and I’ve been presented with many other strong pop punk bands, from the UK mainly, this year. However, I strongly urge everyone reading this to check them out, since chances are that you will dig them a lot. I seriously wish I could say the same for me, as it is clear that the guys are really passionate about their music and they truly deserve every bit of support they can get! Head over to their Facebook page for more info, listen to the song below and keep your eyes peeled on December 1st, which is the official release date of the EP. Long story short and in accordance with the name of the EP: truly good stuff, but I’ve had one too many. Cheers to that!
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fq1FLu0qIyc]