If 2020 did anything good to the world, it was the resurgence and revival of a genre often mocked, derided, and scorned — pop punk. And while critics and stingy music enthusiasts may still ridicule fans and artists of the genre, there’s an emotion and nostalgia that is so intrinsic to it which millions resonate with. After a decade of irrelevance and derision, pop punk is now re-emerging as one of the hottest aesthetics and sounds in mainstream music. In early May this year, arguably the biggest new name in music, Olivia Rodrigo, debuted at the top of the billboard charts with a pop punk anthem of her own in “good 4 u”. Clearly, the path is paved for new artist who grew up on the genre to reimagine it with their own spin. On the debut self titled project of hellocentral, the Denver based outfit bring a more raw and unfiltered approach instead of the current sanitized and watered down approach.
In the most appropriate fashion, the band was formed by four lifelong friends and their music details their shared experience and passion for the genre. Their unique blend of dream pop and aggressive punk rock makes for a contrast that’s hitherto unexplored in the punk genre. Starting with ‘aloha’, the group hits the album off on a high note with a classic punk rock anthem that sounds straight out of the genre’s heyday. A loud and overbearing riff coupled with whiny and addictive hooks, it’s classic pop punk. The up-tempo off the wall energy continues on tracks like ‘monster’ and ‘morningstar’, both continuing the age old tradition. It’s on track four, the more solemn and melancholic ‘…if you want to’, that hellocentral begin to show their own spin. ‘writing more sad songs, hope you sing along’ — emo rock in a line.
The self-titled debut from hellocentral is a treasure trove of pop-punk that allows you to choose and pick which melody most resonates with you. With about nine tracks falling in the realm of tradition, they’re one of the few artists out today who can definitively call themselves descendants of the originals. But it’s the more experimental pieces that grasped my attention, with the final piece ‘skywasfalling’ being a particular highlight. The subtle synths in the background and the down-tempo instrumental make for the ideal palette cleansing outro. ‘don’t feel a thing’ heavily relies on vocal synthesising and a simple acoustic melody for you to drown your sorrows in.
Fans of emo rock and pop punk will inevitably be drawn to this record, but even the deriders will find moments to cherish here.