From the very first Punktastic Bash in 2002, playing to 70 people at the Sheffield Corportaion to playing with Brand New at the city‘s Leadmill venue in front of 900 fans, you could say My Awesome Compilation have come a long way. This was always going to be a very hard review, and a biased one, because I consider MAC to be friends as well as a band that I happen to know. It’s been amazing for me personally to watch them grow into the band I always had an inkling they’d become. ‘The View Is Amazing’ is merely conformation that MAC have arrived – and that they’re here to stay.
It’s been a year in the making, but this 6-track EP is now available on Sorepoint Records, despite being recorded in San Diego last summer. I was lucky enough to get a demo of those recordings last August (along with ‘Sunsets and Sunrise’ that never made the final cut), and I was blown away. After mixing and the artwork finally came through several months ago, the EP sounds just as good as it did last summer – testament to just how good the band and songs are. MAC don’t try anything too taxing; they write infectious, melodic rock songs whilst wearing their hearts on their sleeves. It’s not groundbreaking stuff, but it’s done with so much creativity, flair and panache that you cannot help but fall for their charms. ‘As Always’ is a pearler, while the re-recorded ‘Miracle Mile’ sounds great with the added keyboards, mixed in by producer Ben Moore.
For me this record stands out with the fantastic ‘Butterflies’, a track so cute it would fit snugly onto the soundtrack of an episode of The OC, and the barnstorming ‘Wish You Well’, a song that is arguably my favourite MAC song ever. The ‘every souvenir has a story’ refrain is a real lighters-in-the-air moment and the guitars and drums stomp through the choruses. Just wait until you hear this track acoustically – it’s so stripped down and threadbare it’s awesome. (no pun intended). On the downside, three of the songs featured on their last EP, ‘Every Souvenir Has A Story’, so for the old-skool fans among us this isn’t the best value for money. Two of those songs have been re-recorded though, so at least it’s not all bad.
I’ll make no bones about it, I am a big fan of My Awesome Compilation and I’m always going to have the rose-tinted specs on, but this is a fantastic record that will hopefully see them get some success. Anyone who has seen this band live knows they love what they do; ‘The Viewing Is Amazing’ is the culmination of a lot of love. Recent successes such as the Brand New support, having their video on Scuzz and with more high profile supports to come, the future is looking very bright. It seems a long time since they played at PB1, but every success has been earned – and couldn’t happen to nicer guys.
www.myawesomecompilation.com
Sorepoint Records
Bravestar Records
Paul