First Impressions is a collection of whiz-bang reviews of singles, 7″s, EPs, and LPs which are given a review after a single listen. This is a great way for TGEFM to showcase some of the releases which may not get a full review on their own.
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Bathroom of the Future – “Maclunkey EP”
Laptop Punk Records, 10 Jun 2022
The nerds in Bathroom of the Future always seem ready to bring the catchy pop punk about geek culture goods. My favorite on the new Maclunkey EP is “Midnight Run”, which is all about staying up late to watch Cartoon Network. The songs on here are wrapped in rattling and prominent bass, kicking drums, and fairly clean and melodic guitars. And the lead vocals find a good balance between angst and nerd, carrying some nice tunes. These are melodic pop punk gems, and I find myself falling for them already.
Favorite Song: “Midnight Run”
Review by RYAN
Maria Surfinbird – “Stupid Games”
Laptop Punk Records, 09 Jun 2022
If you know this Kody Templeman-penned song, then you’ll know it’s a catchy riot. And Maria Surfinbird does a terrific job with her buzzsaw guitars, melodic lead vocals, and mellotron (?) adding some catchy melodic hooks after the first round chorus. Surfinbird stays true to the original – there’s no significant changes to the structure or the melodies – but it’s a fun take on a fantastic song. You gotta hear it.
Review by RYAN
Limoges – “Milan Shakes Turin Shocks, Limoges Rocks”
Hey Pizza! Records/Slack! Records/Memorable But Not Honorable, 4 Apr 2022
Italy’s Limoges newest album is a garage-pop-punk golden nugget. Featuring members of a bunch of fantastic bands including MEGA, Volkov, and others, Limoges keeps the earworm pop hooks and melodies the parent bands do so well, but they wrap them in a rough-and-tumble garage sheen that reminds me of the great Marked Men. Lead single “The Girl I’ll Meet Yesterday” sticks most, maybe because it was my first impression. But there’s not a dud on the record and they rush by, 10 songs in 18 minutes, at a clip that just makes me turn it on again.
Favorite Song: “The Girl I’ll Meet Yesterday”
Review by RYAN
Grim Deeds – “Stoned to Oblivion”
Self-released, 18 Jun 2022
Grim Deeds newest one, “Stoned to Oblivion”, is a fuzzy barn-burner with a catchy melodic vocal turn, nice backing vocals at the end of each verse line and even some “stoned, stoned” call-and-response vocals on the chorus. Like lots of his music, this one is contagious pop punk and the lyrics tell a pretty funny “up in smoke”-tale along the way. This is worth your time.
Review by RYAN
The Decline – “Absent Mindlessness”
Pee Records, 20 May 2022
On The Decline’s “Absent Mindlessness”, the drums and bass go a couple times through, then the rest of the band joins with some lead guitar and the vocals come through. The verse is decidedly okay, but the chorus is loaded up with hooks and I know this one’s gonna be a singalong if I hear it another time or two. And the music is well executed – clean, tight, and structured pretty right. I’m not gonna say this has everything I need (the verses knock it down a notch), but the chorus is good enough to get me coming back.
Review by RYAN
ryan is a reviewer and news editor for TGEFM. He’s very secretive, he might be an alien.
