Band: The Get Up Kids
EP: Kicker
Label: Big Scary Monsters
Release date: Out now
Sounds like: Capturing the emo sun and smashing apart a dirty basement show.
There’s something ultimately warming about The Get Up Kids and their sound. Being one of the five people who enjoyed their big “fuck you” record that was On A Wire (an album that sits slap bang in the middle of their career, dividing opinion and scattering their fanbase to the four winds) and its campfire-sounding sing-a-longs, fuzzy, maudlin tones and songs that sound best heard in the comfort of the darkness. It was a step away from the sweaty raucous punch of Something To Write Home About and indeed, Four Minute Mile. It’s interesting then, that Kicker, a four track, 14 minute EP of tightly packed anthems is a hark back to days of old and is laced with longing, tingling nostalgia.
The crunching squeal of the guitars on opener Maybe will send a shiver of delight down your spine, not to mention the erratic keyboard stabs from James Dewees and spirited tambourine slaps. This kind of melodic, uplifting rock is juxtaposed with a tale of defeat and a longing need for support; the line “Nothing more for me to do/I can’t talk to you know who/I feel like running away” is delivered in a resolute way, but there are moments of bright optimism shining through “there’s still more work to do” sings vocalist Matt Pryor, creating this almost Jekyll and Hyde persona.
The 3 minute banger of Better This Way, absolutely steams past, featuring a killer chorus and the cry of “if you need me I’ll be here/but if you want to disappear/it would be wrong to say/I guess some things would be better this way” it errs on the side of maudlin and abandonment, but perhaps a focus of moving on and being free. Either way, it’s a sturdy, robust slab of their brand of expressive punk, with a killer undercutting keyboard line.
I’m Sorry feels a lot more immediate; enveloped in this Saves The Day-esque pop-rock bounce (think Through Being Cool if you need a reference point) and feels like a warm, embracing hug of good feelings and the semi-cheesy chorus of “I never want to miss your Birthday parties, I just want to see you smiling…” sung by Pryor will make you grin from ear to ear and my favourite song on this short and sweet EP – a track brimming with positive vibes. The atmospheric synth-led stroll of My Own Reflection, is a lot more thoughtful in execution, brooding and lingering for a good couple of minutes before, bursting forth with a positive and sudden “HEY!” The last minute or so is a glorious overlapping mix of twinkling keys, washed-out, grunge-esque guitars and is an infectious, hook-drenched ear-worm, that suddenly cuts off just as you begin to get into it.
Kicker is a cracking EP and return for The Get Up Kids, tapping into their signature sound and enough expressive ideas to keep fans old and new interested. Great work – stream/download/buy it now.
Links
The Get Up Kids
The Get Up Kids Facebook
Big Scary Monsters
Lizard Hips
Junior Vice President of Keep It Fast. In other news: I work in social media, talk about dinosaurs, run a book club and have amazing facial hair. I am also a male man who is still not dead.
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