It’s long been a staple of the pop-punk genre to include an acoustic song as part of an album but ‘More Acoustic Songs’ is the second time that Real Friends have put out a EP dedicated to the stripped back approach. This time around, they’ve brought together a few more of their best known songs from across their back catalogue, alongside a cover of The Starting Line’s ‘Island’.
Any reworked song is inevitably going to be compared to the original version, and ‘Summer’ isn’t vastly different to that which first appeared on ‘Maybe This Place Is The Same And We’re Just Changing’. The arrangement is largely the same, and it’s the extra vulnerability that the unplugged angle adds to Dan Lambton’s voice as it cracks and breaks that provides the main draw. Real Friends have always been famed for their honest lyrics, and they haven’t lost any impact here despite the typically fast pop-punk delivery being slow downed considerably. ‘I Don’t Love You Anymore’ again finds Dan’s vocals placed front and centre, affording fans the opportunity to pick over the meaning of every line as the guitars strum underneath.
It’s a shame that the somewhat bland instrumentation holds the songs back even in the EP’s better moments. ‘Late Nights In My Car’ is one of Real Friends’ most well known songs and so it proves to be the centrepiece of ‘More Acoustic Songs’. The chorus in particular remains brutally heartfelt, but it suffers from the same issues as the others and feels too much like a wasted opportunity. Ironically, it’s their cover of ‘Island’ by The Starting Line that is the most original song on the EP. Whilst Real Friends have failed to use the opportunity to do something creative with their own songs, ‘Island’ feels energetic, fun, and unique.
Unfortunately, Real Friends have let themselves be constrained by the acoustic nature of this EP and not enough has been done to take the strengths of each track into account. Beyond the unplugging of amps and the absence of drums, the songs play out just as you would expect. Dedicated fans are likely to get a certain level of enjoyment out of what’s on offer, but those looking for a place to start with Real Friends would do better listening to their other releases first.
CHRIS HILSON