The Descendents strike again. After another long hiatus, they have temporarily regrouped to record more music. The 'Merican EP is the first release in six years, with four songs, two of which will be on the Cool to Be You CD, which came out a month or so ago.
For those of us who are familiar with the Descendents, also known as The Greatest Pop Punk Band Ever, we knew what to expect as soon as we heard news of a new EP: a monocolored CD cover with DESCENDENTS in non-sarif font printed on top, a caricature mugshot of singer Milo Aukerman on the center, and the name of the CD next to or underneath him. And guess what? That�s exactly what we got. And it will never get old. Not for the twenty plus years that the Descendents have been around for.
Even if you've never heard the band's music, you've probably heard of them, considering they are name dropped frequently as major influences of Nerf Herder, MxPx, The Ataris, NOFX, Jawbreaker, and No Use for a Name.
Descendents were first to carry the signature sound of pop punk, more or less. On this EP, they don�t lose any of the youth and nerdiness they were loved for two decades ago. Yeah, by now these guys are in their 40s, almost 50s even. The record still sounds like young kids in a garage. I honestly don�t believe any member of this band has aged since they released Everything Sucks.
These four songs are as cute and loveable as the older songs. Not as fast or frantic, and Steven Egerton's guitar skills are a lot better than what he presents here. What you get is an honest, upfront punk release, without overproduction or excessive layering.
In short, this 4 song EP is nothing but fun. For people who haven�t heard the Descendents before and are interested, I urge you to get the classic Milo Goes to College CD first. You won't regret it.
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C.L. '04 |
