Dynamic third album from soaring punk rockers Midtown fails to let down.
Midtown are one of those fantastic bands who just can’t decide which genre they fit into. Their third album, ‘Forget What You Know’ is a stunning combination of happy-go-lucky pop and deeper, darker spooky punk. Other genres are touched upon to give a very different view of the talent found within some of today’s new bands.
‘To Our Saviour’ contains those angst filled guitars which are normally associated with AFI, but manages to combine them with vocals usually found on a slightly more mainstream band. Not that this is a bad thing, because Midtown are talented enough to successfully include whatever they want into a song without it sounding dire. ‘Is It Me?’ is another song with “single” written all over it. The lyrics are somewhat gloomy, but overall it’s the best spooky punk since ‘Sing The Sorrow’ was released. If you like, Midtown are the grown up Blink 182, unafraid of pianos, melodies or creating albums devoid of immature jokes or words.
The title ‘Whole New World’ may bring back memories of Disney’s Aladdin, but upon listening, your ears are dragged into a maze of mid-paced guitars and solemn pianos working away in the background. Even if you dislike punk, Midtown are loveable. Their honesty is evident in their lyrics which spread across many different topics. Having taken only three weeks to record, this is a fast moving record in all possible ways. Almost like small children suffering from too much sugar, their attention changes from hefty guitars to breakneck drumming. They can even manage to create a thirteen minute song which doesn’t drag- something very few bands can achieve these days. ‘Help Me Sleep’ is a soaring punk song which radiates cool much like a freshly baked pie whilst ‘Manhattan’ is the dramatic west-end song which has a very desperate sound to it, almost as though Midtown know they only have a few more minutes to get the message across that they’re a serious band who know they’re going to go far. Having already toured with Blink 182, it seems there is no stopping them.