Mixtapes
Somewhere In Trinsic
Animal Style/No Sleep (2012)
Sounds like: Pop punk, The Ataris, The Measure [sa]
Score: 8.5/10
On the Somewhere In Trinsic EP, Mixtapes show they have the ambition and talent to be a staple in pop punk for a quite a while. The talent was on display in pretty much all previous releases (producing roughly thirty songs, each with a quality hook), but here we see them start to ease up a little on the punk and really drive home the pop.
The first song, and clear stand out, “Even On the Worst Nights” (also featured on their brand new full-length of the same name) shows the band taking advantage of the dual vocals of Ryan Rockwell and Maura Weaver. They construct the excellent harmonies featured in most of their songs, but also seem to be playing with independent personalities. Weaver’s solo in the bridge gives the song an almost dialogic quality that just makes it that much more fun and will clearly invite shout-alongs. The attempt to make this distinction is not entirely flushed out, but the song is none the worse for it. As with all of their songs, the melodies are infectious and better developed than those by most of their peers.
Perhaps most important is the direction this carries them in. Unlike past releases, none of these songs contain the frantic energy they usually show, opting for more evenly paced tempos. This is not to say the witty angst and small town blues are absent here, just that each song seems more carefully put together, where past releases have featured some sketches of songs that barely cross the minute mark. I for one miss the sense that the energy is constantly threatening the stability of the song, but the ecstasy these melodies carry makes them truly undeniable. So long as Mixtapes keeps the hooks coming, everything else is kind of secondary, and I can live with that.
-Patrick Caddick
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