PUP - "The Dream Is Over"

Lets take a second to talk about “opening acts” at shows, shall we.  We’re living in a time where half of the concert crowd doesn’t even bother to show up for the opening act, and it’s not hard to see why not.  I’ve seen Dubstep DJ’s open up punk acts, and a folk band (stand up bass and all) open up for Queens of The Stone Age.  On the other hand, you can also really score big time with opening acts.  I saw the Get Up Kids last year, and PUP opened up for them, and you should have seen the crown once PUP started their set.  Everyone stopped what they were doing to listen to these guys.  Even the people I were with stopped me mis sentence to say “Oh is this PUP?  Yea I wanna hear these guys we’ll talk later”.  They actually put on a really solid set, and in the year since that show I’ve actually heard a lot of buzz about their debut album here, “The Dream Is Over”, mostly on how solid some of the teaser tracks were.

The album here starts off with “If This Tour Doesn’t Kill You, I Will” (genuinely entertaining song title, it also happens to be the first line in this song, these guys don’t waste a second).  This track here is delightfully Pop Punk, with every cliche built up by bands like Blink 182, Sum 41, and every other band with a number in their name thats’s escaping me at the moment.  While PUP aren’t inventing any wheels here, they make up for that with a fantastic amount of energy, mostly in those group vocals.  Those group vocals can usually go really one way or another on Pop Punk tracks but PUP pull it off well for the most part.  When the main guitar riff to this one hits, it’s got almost a dance groove to it, and is easily the most left field thing here.  “If This Tour Doesn’t Kill You, I Will” is filled with quirky lyrical moments and a fun energy, it’s not jaw dropping but its solid.  Up next is “DVP”.  The band’s great energy continues here, and their Hardcore Punk influence shines brightly.  The Pop Punk cliche’s stay though, and they’re absolutely dripping from this one.  Group Vocals in Pop Punk have been so overdone over the years, but for some reason PUP really makes them work here on “DVP”.  They’re still not inventing any wheels, but I can’t remember the last time I was even able to sit through something this Poppy in the Punk world.  A few tracks later though on “Sleep In The Heat”, PUP starts to really finely tune their sound.  Right from the intro we’re dealing with a riff that I can at least say sounds distinct to these guys.  I’m still not 100% sold on the vocals sadly, here vocalist Stefan Babcock sounds like his voice is literally moments away from cracking, but this oddly this is also one of his better performances here.  PUP’s instrumentals here for the Pop Punk genre are completely left field, which honestly make it really exciting, especially when it’s paired up with those group vocals.  Not to mention, that post chorus group-humming is absolutely mesmerizing, and it makes the track almost anthemic.  Now while I enjoy this album overall, I feel like PUP have plenty of room to still grow.  Take for example “My Life Is Over And I Couldn't Be Happier”.  The track starts off solid enough with an energetic riff and quirky catchy lyrics that make me really want to sing along.  The chorus on this one though is absolutely pathetic and that turns me off.  Honestly, the entire verse is a great and energetic buildup to the chorus, and when it hits it’s like some one turned all of the energy off, there is literally nothing to it.  Just a couple of really minor tweaks here and there and these guys could really pull off an unbelievable Pop Punk album.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9kqvXX4YkA

I feel like so many tracks on here have so many good elements, but one or two that’s holding me back from really falling in love with this thing.  On “Doubts” we hear the band diving into their more Hardcore side.  But outside of the group vocals, these verses are just so whiny and boring.  And it’s a real shame, because the hook and everything else here is so solid and interesting.  But when it comes to the verses, it’s like someone stuck a pin in these guys and let all of their energy out.  The breakdowns here aren’t bad, they’re not too insanely memorable either, but they’re not terrible.  “The Coast” has basically the same problem.  This one’s a slower song, and slower Pop Punk songs can be dreadful.  Here, the instrumentals are so solid though, and those drums in the back are seriously leading everything on this entire track.  The breakdowns here on the other hand are actually really solid with some genuinely exciting moments, and the chorus is once again fantastic.  However, man these verses just come and go without leaving a single effect on me I feel like.  PUP’s energy though really saves them here.  “The Coast” isn’t the worst, but it could’ve been insanely memorable with a little stronger writing on those verses.  Literally all of this happens again on “Can’t Win”.  Once again, we’re dealing with a slower song, and ONCE AGAIN we’re dealing with some of Pup’s catchiest material when it comes to that chorus.  But these verses just kinda fly by, leaving nothing to remember or quote or anything close.  Hell some of these instrumentals don’t even sound like Pop Punk, or even punk for that matter, this at moments sounds like a straight up Indie tune.  PUP’s energy though is commendable, and while I’m not 100% sold on a lot of these tracks, I haven’t really stopped moving since this album started.  And it’s a real shame that there are these deflated moments throughout,  because after all of that were treated to stuff like “Familiar Patterns”.  Here, PUP treats us to absolutely piercing instrumentals that make you take notice immediately, as well as some of the strongest verses I’ve heard this entire album.  While other moments here there have been just some elements here and there I had problems with, on “Familiar Patterns” everything works. PUP sound at their most comfortable lyrically, the instrumentals are exciting, that chorus is fantastic, I actually have nothing bad to say about this one.



Now while some tracks here I'm iffy on clearly, "Old Wounds" is from start to finish perfect.  This track starts abruptly, builds quickly, and is by far the heaviest thing here.  This is a straight up Hardcore Punk tune, one that works wonderfully for the band.  The vocals here aren't whiny, hell they sound tortured, in the best way.  And there's this fantastic lyrical moment that actually reminds me of something Hardcore legends like Henry Rollins or Jello Biafra would say. as Babcock states "You want to know if I'm still a prick?  Well I am".  "Old Wounds" is just so impressive, more of this in the future please.  Then we get to the album's finale, "Pine Point", and honestly I was worried about this one's slow pace.  However the building instrumentals at the start are actually enjoyable, The group vocals here are sort-of cheesy and this is by far the sappiest, saddest track here.  But honestly? It could have been a whole lot worse.



Rating: 7.4/10

Give a Listen To:  "DVP", "Sleep In The Heat", "Familiar Patterns, "Old Wounds"



Overall Thoughts:  For the most part here, PUP don't bring anything too outrageously new to the Pop Punk scene.  However, their energy and group vocals make for a solid album for the genre, honestly one of the better ones I've heard in a while.  With a little stronger song-writing and a little more focus on their Hardcore sound, and I think they can pull off something great in the future, this is still a solid release though.