I first came across Lights Alive when they submitted a 30-second track for the next Punktastic compilation. It’s a bright, breezy poppy track which is really impressive. As a result I was keenly anticipating their EP, thinking we may have a brand new pop-punk hopefull on our doorsteps. However, this 4-tracker is a little disappointing. While not far from being where they need to be, this EP (I guess helpfully) points out the band’s limitations and if they take the advice constructively, I’m sure they’ll be a better band for it.
I’ll start with the ultra negative. ‘Actions Repeated’ is just a bad, bad song. It’s too long, too slow and the vocalist sometimes fails to hit some of the more adventurous notes. It needs to be banished to the bin and never played again. Thankfully the other three tracks are better. ‘I’ll Be Everything’ would be better if it was played a bit quicker, I think this band really spark off the energy and it suits the singer to be singing with a bit more spark. ‘1000 Ships’ is also better when the band pick up the pace and the longer the song goes on, the better they sound.
The last track on this EP, ‘Tired of Trying’, is possibly the best song, a track which features a nice guitar riff and a much improved vocal performance. And crucially, it’s that bit quicker too. For me the band need to pick up the pace. They’re no better than average at the mid-tempo numbers, but are clearly talented enough to be able to push the accelerator down and just rock out. If they can iron out some of these problems, I think we could be speaking about them in the same breath as Fast Reaction and Fleeing From Finales.