Golden Mixtape

If I wasn’t sitting by a Macy’s bag and typing on an iPod, one would think I was homeless. In this case I just mirror a hipster. I’m physically done after an afternoon trying to find LA’s Fashion District. I failed that and have retired to a sad excuse for a mall to tell you about Scuzbot’s self-titled album. It’s unlike the pop punk out today, but at the same time…it’s not anything I haven’t heard before. Falling somewhere between 2002 and today is Scuzbot, a Pennsylvania band with a record that’s straight to the point when it comes to unattended parties and feeling dead.

So many of the pop punk bands coming out today are talking about the same things and have the same sound. They’re adults fed up with not fitting in. We’ve talked extensively about that now, but then there are bands I feel might be adults but have a more youthful pep in their musical step. Bands like Par 6 and Super Prime are examples of this, and are the company I feel Scuzbot should keep.

“Two Fifteen” has the strongest lead in, but it’s “Giving Up On You” that makes the biggest imprint on the mind. The slowest of the bunch, this one embodies that unpopular mindset. It’s that person who doesn’t get the party invitation and spends their weekend nights with Mortal Kombat and the couch. Those aren’t the only two to win me over though, “People Hate Fun” made me laugh with the title alone because it’s true. I hate people…well adults, who seem to forget they were once teens and fail to see the brighter side of life. This one isn’t a symbolic song filled with metaphors, it’s simple and had a Blink 182 vibe as “let’s get obnoxious” is sung loud and clear.

Where there are tracks you head towards, there are also ones you tend to stay away from. “Perfect” and “Send in the Clowns” just didn’t do anything for me, and “Shoes” left me confused. How’d we go from footwear to thoughts about death…soles…souls?

Scuzbot isn’t in a league of their own when it comes to pop punk, they sit well with bands that embrace a youthful mentality like Par 6 and A Story To Tell. Their self-titled is available to download on October 16^th, so get on it.