Scotland is famed for many things; beautiful scenery, rain and tartan to name but a few. One thing, however, that the country receives very little credit for is its healthy punk rock scene. It may not be huge, but there are a lot of good bands plying their trade north of the border. The Ritalins are one such outfit. Haling from Dundee, the band have the honour of being the first group to have a release through the new All-Nite Records label. “Kelly EP” is that release and it is available on a shiny 7”.
The Ritalins are a pretty unique band on the UK scene, playing as they do a brand of pop punk that is heavily influenced by The Ramones and Screeching Weasel. It’s certainly not a musical recipe that I have heard many other bands attempting. However, despite the obvious influences, The Ritalins still have an identity of their own. The “Kelly EP” offers the listener four tracks of fast paced melodic punk rock, with two tracks on either side of the EP.
Kicking off with the title track, the band unveil the musical formula they stick to throughout. It’s a speedy, infectious song that is wrapped up nicely with some snotty vocals. ‘I Wanna Be An Aper’ a musical tribute to the Dutch band, proves to be even better than the first track. The Ritalins play the kind of music that will have you moving your body without even knowing it. ‘I Feel Sick’ and ‘Twenty One’ fly past in no time at all, but manage to keep the quality up.
The Ritalins debut release is a solid and enjoyable slice of pop punk that will appeal to a broad spectrum of music fans. If they can keep this level up, I look forward to hearing more from the band in the near future.
www.all-nite-records.com
Mark
