Kelly Kapowski, Lincoln City, and 2Unlimited. Three of my first loves in life, but there is one which I have neglected of late, it has been hard, and my I have missed her, but this is the first pop-punk record I have heard in a while. My diet of late has consisted of a dash of emo, a sprinkling of this ‘screamo’ lark, and a large dose of hardcore, so to receive a nice pop-punk record was a pleasant surprise. Upon first listen though, the same old problems with the genre resurfaced. If it isn’t done well, well frankly it is shit. ‘Zero Point Six‘ have created a three track EP which isn’t all bad, they show promise, but ultimately it doesn’t quite make the grade.
Opener ‘Sweet Sixteen’ is as generic as they come, featuring a customary flowery opening before coming into the vocals of front man Scott Milner (who incidentally does a pretty decent job) before a meek chorus rounds off a distinctly average song which doesn’t bode well for the rest of the EP. Luckily ‘Heartache Shmartache’ is a push in the right direction, with the pace picking up and reminding me of MxPx from days gone by. The latter end of the track is to the bands credit as well, with some cracking harmonies taking centre stage. It culminates in a slightly disappointing ending with ‘5th Time Round’ proving pretty lacklustre as the pace is downed again.
So once again we have another bunch of youngsters on our hands making pretty decent music without really setting their CD alight. They do show a certain something, which could push them further forward in the ranks of the punk rock world, and without wanting to sound like Simon Cowell to much, they just need a certain x-factor to make that push.
www.zeropointsix.com
Jay