If We Die Tomorrow,
Friction*FxIt seems that pop-punk has more than a bit of a stigma about itself right now, conjuring up images of whiny pre-teens with baseball caps, ludicrous amounts of hair gel and wristbands playing simplistically repetitive songs about school, girls and parents. With crap like Mest, Good Charlotte and Something Corporate (ooh, I’m going to upset a lot of people!) clogging up the genre it’s worth remembering that The Decendents were the poppiest of pop-punk, as were The Ramones and more modern bands like Captain ‘Best band around right now bar none’ Everything and The ‘You haven’t heard them yet but they’re awesome’ Unknown. So have we established that pop-punk, as a genre isn’t without its redeeming features and bands? Good.
And after all, what’s wrong with a catchy melody and a singalong chorus? If We Die Tomorrow is rammed full of ‘em, right from the opening riff to ‘Relationships’. Chunky verses and competent guitar work anchor the song throughout, even if the vocal does start to grate a bit. It’s a touch too nasal for my liking and there are times later in the EP when there’s a bit of false-American-accent-disease going on, something that I personally detest. But it’s not that pronounced and as a whole Friction*FX get away with it. ‘Find You’ is a slightly predictable but wholly enjoyable chugfest that incorporates the best chorus of the whole CD, all soaring vocals and hummable melodies.
‘Four AM’ is a touch cheesy, full of stock lyrical images and a far too indulgent build up that is immediately forgotten as soon as the momentum of the song kicks in. The simplicity of the song is its greatest asset and trying to embellish it with unnecessary sections only detracts from its overall effect. ‘Fallin’ sounds like Gash used to before they disbanded, with maybe a touch of Consumed’s abrasive edge adding another layer to the sound. Perhaps there aren’t that many new ideas on display here but that doesn’t mean that they are to be written off, since Friction*FX ably demonstrate that they have found their sound and are prepared to work around it.
While Friction*FX aren’t the most innovative of bands it’s worth noting that while ‘If We Die Tomorrow’ is full of recognisable lyrical themes, there aren’t any times when the songs sound hackneyed or ripped off, and they are to be commended for that. Personally I think that they’ve certainly got the basis for a good set of songs and the moments when they do try something a little more complex or different are practically always successful – only when they play safe do they let themselves down.
Ben
www.frictionfx.com
www.noorderrecords.com
