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American Television

Scars

Written by: PP on 08/01/2024 23:26:09

If there was a prototypical FEST band where you'd expect tallboys to be flying in a sweaty venue during the Halloween weekend in Florida, American Television would be it. They play a brand of no-frills pop punk with a rowdy tempo and slightly scratchy vocals that has basically all the elements loved by that scene: light political charge, but a no-bullshit attitude to songwriting, with plenty of catchy pop punk choruses spliced with tight guitars. Think Direct Hit!, The Dopamines, Banner Pilot, and Off With Their Heads, and you've pretty much got their sophomore album "Scars".

That's by no means a bad thing, by the way. It's like going to your favorite restaurant: you'll get your dish served exactly as you want it without any extra (unnecessary) flair. In this case, plenty of breakneck speed tempo sing-alongs and basement-style chants, circle pit-friendly punk rockers, and ridiculously catchy sing-alongs, such as "Snakes", "New Generation" or the title track.

Sometimes all you gotta do is to hone the basics to perfection, and that's what American Television specializes in here. They're not trying to reinvent the wheel, rather than sticking to what works. And what's wrong with writing a bunch of catchy choruses delivered in high-energy fashion and having fun while doing it? "Scars" is proof that you can do just that without sounding derivative or cliché. Great stuff.

Download: Snakes, New Generation, Scars, Bittersweet, Moments
For the fans of: Off With Their Heads, Banner Pilot, The Priceduifkies, Direct Hit, The Copyrights, The 20Belows, The Dopamines
Listen: Facebook

Release date 22.09.2023
SmartPunk Records