Pop-punk is a
genre that has been maligned as much as it has been celebrated; even
the most stringent of fans can come to blows over what can and can't
be considered as such. Like most contested genres though, the idea of
what is and isn't pop-punk, is purely subjective and thus it falls at
the feet of any given listeners personal musical background to define
what they consider to be an apt depiction of the genre. One band,
however, who shouldn't have too much trouble in this area, is
Essex-based A Few Too Many whose energetic and explosive blend of
Anglo innocence and American self-deprecation is completely and
unequivocally pop-punk.
2012
saw the band release their début EP Saint,
Sinner, Winner,
a record that was met with generally favourable reviews and was
quickly followed up by a music video for the EP's eponymous title
track. Now, almost a year after their EP release, A Few Too Many are
back with their new single 'Escape to LA', a sun-bleached and upbeat
affair that yearns for the Californian streets of it's namesake.
At
three-and-a-half minutes long, 'Escape to LA' falls perfectly in to
generic pop-punk territory and fans of bands such as New Found Glory
or Simple Plan will positively reel with excitement as the first
chords and cymbal crashes burst forth from one's speakers, whilst
those who prefer their pop-punk with a little more snot and sneer
will probably opt to dust off their Descendants or Ergs records than
delve further. That shouldn't deter any interest one may have though;
scratch away at the charm and the innocence, and what you'll find is
a quintet of musicians who are harbouring barrels of potential. And
while there are the occasional cracks in the band's youthful veneer,
it's this potential, along with their energy, that plugs those cracks
and keeps the good ship Many afloat. Further to this, whilst many of
the UK's up-and-coming pop-punk acts are opting to move more towards
the genres heavier elements (and we can thank You Me At Six for
that), A Few Too Many are embracing the genre as it was fifteen years
ago, and while it won't give you the same sense of frisson that
hearing the opening chords of Green Day's Dookie
or Blink-182's Dude
Ranch
did, there is absolutely every chance that AFTM will go on to put out
a record that holds the same cultural impact as the aforementioned,
albeit for generations yet to come.
Pop-punk
is a genre that will always pull at my heart-strings and beg me to
dust of my Converse and start up a circle pit, and I'm sure it's the
same for thousands of others. The genre might not be basking in the
limelight like it once did, but it will always have a place in the
hearts of aficionados. This, coupled with the fact that the UK is
still producing bands that want to make this kind of music, should
assure both the band, and pop-punk naysayers alike, that the future
of pop-punk, and the futures all those helping build it, AFTM
included, are looking very rosy indeed.
