Down for the Count – Broken Record Tactics

By paul

The first release on the new Pep Rock Records imprint, SoCal’s Down For The Count bring their poppy brand of emo rock to the table and do it fairly well. They won’t tear down any trees on their way, but ‘Broken record tactics’ is a fun little record for fans of Cartel, The Starting Line and all the usual suspects. ‘No Highway option’ is a really good little song with the dual vocals bouncing off one another and a crunchy guitar riff sounding pretty sweet, while ‘Lucky Seven’ and ‘Something New’ are also anthems in waiting.

Of course Down for the Count sound like quite a few of their contemporaries and that does knock this score down a little bit, but pop-punk has never been a genre of music known for its innovative styles and DFTC don’t exactly stray too far from a winning formula. They remind me a little bit of Asteria too, and while not quite as good if you’re in the mood for some chirpy, melodic ppop punk with a bit of a rockier edge, you could do a lot worse than to check them out.

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