Irish pop-punks Downhill are certainly on the right lines when it comes to their new EP, but they’re a little way off yet from making a massive splash. There’s some definite New Found Glory influence in their sound which is a good thing – the band aren’t influenced by the likes of All Time Low, it’s more the credible NFG/KIGH type of thing. Which is good. The songs on this record are carefully thought out with good backing vocals and some intelligent mixing and production. There are some cool little lead guitar fills which make this sound pretty big. ‘Home’, for instance, is a really good song.
There are a few issues I have with this EP, but none of them are major. The choruses aren’t quite big enough and there was nowhere that really made me want to sing along, but the likes of ‘Worst Situations’ are good songs that showcase a band that’s quite clearly learning their game. I hear a lot of UK pop-punk bands and a lot of them aren’t as good as Downhill. There’s still room to improve, but this is a decent effort.