Pop punk has been hitting back in a big way in 2013. With US heavyweights releasing huge albums this year, it’s worth a look to see what the UK can offer. One of the best contributions from this side of the Atlantic are ROAM, five guys from Eastbourne who you may recognise from their video for ‘Nothing In Return’ which we premiered a few weeks back.
After being picked up by Pinky Swear Records over the summer, ‘Head Down’ comes as a result of the hard work they’ve put in over the past year of being a band. They’ve developed the melodic hooks required to write big songs, and with bangers like these they’re sure to go far.
Kicking off with a clip of the cheeky ‘Waiting For A Mate’ meme, ‘You Never Said’ introduces you to thrashy riffs, bouncing grooves and well-assembled lyrics that come from the heart of the hitting adulthood. The shorter entry of ‘Sticker Slap’ shows they can still get to the point when they want to, whilst maybe the more overlooked ‘Foresight’ offers killer hooks from start to finish.
The sound being created is still of a very New-Found-Glory-via-The-Story-So-Far nature, which is comparable to various other UK acts. The difference with ROAM though is that they are actually starting to let their more natural British grit come through more and more in their songwriting and performance, comparable to bands such as Lower Than Atlantis. Alex Costello’s smoother tones are complemented well against Alex Adam’s harsher qualities, and it’d be great to hear even more of the latter in future.
The production skills supplied by Ian Sadler are great with the tight guitars really being brought to the front of the sound. Closer ‘Head Rush’ unfortunately does stick out with a less punchy sound, recorded at a different session a handful of months earlier. This is made up for somewhat though due to it potentially being the best song on the record.
They’re sure to surpass their contempories if they continue on their current trajectory, and with a more-than-hopeful EP like ‘Head Down’ they deserve a 2014 that really goes their way. This is one of the few UK Pop Punk bands that deserve your time right now.
JAMES FOX