American Diary are the latest contender for “next big thing” in cheesy American pop-punk as they seemingly have all the right ingredients. “The Brightest colours” EP is seven tracks of hook filled pop music dashed with catchy vocals and plenty of harmonies. This will not please some people though as there are countless bands playing similar songs (hit the lights are an obvious example) across America, and this Maryland based four piece are far from original. Does that really matter though? For me my musical tastes often lack a sense of integrity (or so it would seem) but I can’t help but be drawn in by the squeaky clean image and infectious choruses – which American Diary display in abundance.
“The Goodbye celebration” starts the release well by drawing you in with a massive chorus, but this EP firmly hits home with second “We could be heroes” – which has the makings of a huge hit for this band. The lyrics aren’t particularly incisive but you’ll find yourself humming along before you’ve picked up the words, and then after several listens you’ll be singing too. Ok so maybe not everyone is so into singing along in their rooms as me, but you know what I mean. It’s a simple formula with appealing vocals and nowadays this gets marketed and sold by the bucket load. So which lucky label released this EP you ask? Well that’s the beauty of this release – it’s self released by the band and that speaks volumes for the current standard of alternative music.
The best track on “Brightest colours” (which, is actually quite a hard choice) is “life without living” as the enthusiasm is matched with hand claps and that automatically scores well nowadays. In truth though this CD is packed full of quality pop-punk and all seven tracks hold your attention and are as ridiculously poppy as the next. That’s going to signal heaven for some listeners and if you’re a pop-punk aficionado then you’ll love American Diary.
Tom