American pop-punkers Light Years are trying to prove that they are worthy of a place on what has fast-become the (extraordinarily long) Pop Punk Bands of 2015 list, with the last-minute release of their latest album I’ll See You When I See You.
There is a real energy pulsing through this album from the moment you hit play, with opening track ‘Are You Sure’ having such a zing about it that your mood instantly rockets up several notches. If you’re trying to work out where Light Years would fall on the pop-punk spectrum, imagine somewhere between the softer mid-00’s sound, often heard from the likes of Hit the Lights and Holiday Parade, and the classic, anthemic beat of earlier genre bands such as blink-182 and Simple Plan. Take ‘Cracks on the Ceiling’, for example – this track has a breezy, summery sound, taking the gentler approach and checking in with more of a mellow, chilled-out vibe. However, skip ahead to ‘I Can’t Relate’ and we hear a much more defiant, angst-fuelled beat that is almost brutal in comparison, with the perfect makings of a staple pop-punk hit.
Of course, we’d hate to put a downer on such an upbeat record, but there is something about I’ll See You When I See You that falls just a touch short. Put simply, it’s the lack of heart-stopping, breath-taking ‘wow’ moments, which only means one thing: filler tracks. Songs such as ‘So Sorry’ and ‘Rearview’ are just fine as tunes go, but there’s no real spark as they play and, while you can never expect to please every single person with every single song, an album with fillers is never going to be a game-changer.
Light Years might not be breaking through that glass ceiling of cliché pop-punk just yet, but with I’ll See You When I See You they have still managed to create a great piece of pop-punk that deserves a listen just as much as any other.
