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Gloria

What The Hell Have We Got To Lose?

Written by: PP on 01/03/2011 23:23:32

Woah, for a second there I thought I was listening to the second album by The Wonder Years, given how similar Gloria vocalist's sneering, slightly broken clean vocals are to Soupy's delivery. The similarities between one of the most exciting pop punk acts in recent years and the Minneapolis newcomers don't stop there either, because Gloria's new album "What The Hell Have We Got To Lose?" sounds almost note-by-note like "The Upsides". An exaggeration, of course, but there's no escape from having to draw the parallel between two very similar-sounding, old school oriented pop punk bands that share a passion for the small glitches and rough edges in the overall sound as opposed to the sugar-coated and over-polished approach all too many bands fall for, rendering their sound anonymous and, well, generic.

And you know what? Gloria have enough happy, bright, infectious pop punk songs on their record to swipe all such concerns underneath the rug, allowing the listener to concentrate on having fun and singing along instead. And fun is present in good quantity considering song titles like "The Quickest Way To A Man's Heart Is Chuck Norris' Fist", and sing alongs are in no shortage either. That the sound isn't too polished gives the recording charm and makes it convincing, even when the band slows the tempo down considerably. When you combine all of this together, you have a band with a hell of a lot promise, leading me to ask if they're going to be the next The Wonder Years to be discovered by the scene en masse? Time will tell, but for now, enjoy some damn solid, albeit unsurprising pop punk that's played with honesty and passion.

Download: The Quickest Way To A Man's Heart Is Chuck Norris' Fist, Don't Threaten Me With A Good Time...
For the fans of: The Wonder Years
Listen: Myspace

Release date 25.03.2011
Self-Released