The Menzingers - After The Party Epitaph Records | Release Date : 3rd February 2017
The Menzingers new record is a love letter to leaving your 20s behind and reflecting on what was and what could have been . This is a record full of insightfully accurate lyrical content about growing up but also looking forward . “ Where we gunna go now that our 20s are over ?” comes in the very first song and never lets up . The blue collar punk rock keeps on coming and is packed with massive choruses and brutal honesty . “ We both got worthless diplomas , from worthless universities ” rings far too true on ‘ Midwestern States ’ and resonates so applicably with a young audience .
The latter half of After the Party is astonishingly brilliant , there ’ s more melody added into the mix and every word sung by the band is dripping in passion and experience . ‘ Boy Blue ’ is bursting with hooks whilst stand out track ‘ Your Wild Years ’ is a contender for song of 2017 even in these early stages . Softer moments seep in to break up the record but it never truly slows down as after one listen you need to go back to the start and soak it all in all over again . Where a band like The Gaslight Anthem have left that Americana punk rock hole in our world we sure are lucky to have a band like The Menzingers step up and fill that void .
Words by Joshua Clarke
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