MUSIC (CD)

We Are The In Crowd

'Best Intentions' (3)

Pigeonholing WATIC as ‘Paramore-wannabies’ is both easy and understandable, especially considering vocalist Tay Jardine’s, at times, striking similarities to a certain Miss. Williams. However, give their debut full-length a spin and you’ll soon find that there’s much more to them than that.

Granted, the pop-punk framework we are all familiar with lies at the heart of ‘Best Intentions’, but WATIC do add a few more ingredients to the mix.

Opener ‘Rumor Mill’ suggests that plenty of energetic bounce will be heard throughout, but this wheelbarrow isn’t truly picked up again until ‘Exits and Entrances’. Dance sensibilities can be heard on ‘The Worst Thing’, whereas on ‘Kiss Me Again’ Jardine sounds more Taylor Swift than Hayley Williams, which shows how far her vocal capabilities can stretch. Ultimately, it’s the conjoined moments between Jardine and vocalist/guitarist Jordan Eckes that let WATIC shine, giving a new angle to the territory dominated by the likes of Paramore and All Time Low; perhaps the best example of this being ‘This Isn’t Goodbye, It’s BRB’. A good Pop-Punk album, for fans of Pop-Punk.

MUSIC (CD)

Blink-182
'Neighborhoods' (4)

It's been eight years since Blink-182 released a studio album. During that time they've been apart, formed side-projects, reunited and toured the world. This is what we've been waiting for - worth it?
Overall, 'Neighborhoods' is a reminder of their ability to create incredibly melodic and learnable songs. However, the distinction between tracks written by Mark Hoppus and those by Tom Delonge couldn't be any clearer, as the contrast between the spacey, synthetic opener 'Ghost on the Dance Floor' and the powerchord-heavy, up-tempo nature of 'Natives' proves. This isn't a bad thing at all - it makes for a musically wiser and stronger Blink-182, showing us what they've gained as musicians during their time away from the band. If drawing comparisons, 'Neighborhoods' lies closer to the grown-up side of Blink-182 as found on their self-titled release in 2003. Lyrical maturity can be heard throughout the record, it's most exposed areas are present in 'After Midnight', 'Kaleidoscope' and even on the more fast paced moments which may be associated with earlier material, like 'Heart's All Gone'. There’s no reason why any of the tracks on 'Neighborhoods' cannot be considered as 'classic' Blink-182. This will soon be a classic album itself.