Remo Drive - "Pop Music" EP

Remo Drive is an Emo band from Minnesota that I really missed the boat on last year.  I had heard their name thrown around quite a bit, but I really never gave their "Greatest Hits" album the chance I should have.  But recently, I finally did give it a listen, and I couldn't be happier with what I was hearing.  This album is packed with Emo by the absolute books.  There were Post-Hardcore influenced instrumentals, self-conscious lyrics, and quirky humor that any fan of the late 90's Emo scene will absolutely eat up.  Tracks like "I'm My Own Doctor" and "Strawberita" are just so freakin' obvious in a time where great Emo music is just so hard to find these days.  Now, I didn't expect to hear anything from Remo Drive anytime soon, but low and behold they're back with a new EP.  Let's talk about it!

    This EP starts off with “Blue Ribbon”, and this one doesn’t waste any time.  Right off the bat, this is a little more straightforward than the material we were given on Remo Drive’s album from last year.  I’m not as into Erik Paulson’s vocals sadly, as they’re not nearly as heartfelt.  But for modern Emo and Pop Punk, Remo Drive clearly still have a LOT to give us.  This track is punchy, catchy, and a totally compelling tune. Is Remo Drive sort of sounding more and more like their contemporaries?  Sadly, yes, but this is still a great tune.  Then we have “Song of the Summer”, which to be honest I almost prefer in a way.  It’s much more breezy, but it’s a whole lot more upbeat and a little more aggressive.  And you know what that means, hell yea Erik Paulson’s performance is much more emotional and harder hitting.  To me, this one just sounds so much more up to speed with what they were doing on their debut album. It’s not nearly as whiny as this EP’s start, and I love just how determined this comes off.  Hell yea “Song of the Summer” works, and that last set of solos is just so soaring.  This one is actually a great track.  “Heartstrings” ends this EP off, and this is much slower, with almost some Post-Hardcore influence in those instrumentals.  I actually really like the way Remo Drive tackle this.  The chorus is just so gigantic and passionate, and I love how patient all of the verses are.  This EP, while it’s short, is interesting, and gives us a little sample of a few things Remo Drive have been working on.  

Rating:  7.4/10 

Genre: Emo / Pop Punk

Overall Thoughts:  This is a fairly solid EP from this Pop Punk and Emo band.  My only real issue is how short it is.  We weren’t clambering for new material from Remo Drive, hell, I was still enjoying “Greatest Hits”.  Nonetheless we have a few new songs from these guys.  We get some Pop Punk here, we even get them traveling in a heavier direction as well.  If you’re interested in what Remo Drive have been up to recently, there’s certainly nothing wrong with this collection of tunes, I just expected some more material.