MAYPINE -Bend/Break EP Review

Bend/Break is the new EP from Brighton based pop punks MAYPINE. Having released their debut EP in 2017, they have returned with this new offering. The guitar lines and thick textures of the instrumental passages are probably the most memorable thing about this release. When it comes to pop punk, there is a lot of […]

Bend/Break is the new EP from Brighton based pop punks MAYPINE. Having released their debut EP in 2017, they have returned with this new offering. The guitar lines and thick textures of the instrumental passages are probably the most memorable thing about this release.

When it comes to pop punk, there is a lot of reliance on the  big hook-laden pop choruses that give the genre its name and, unfortunately, those present across this EP just don’t live up to that standard.  Across all four of these songs, there just isn’t a memorable chorus, which is a shame as the background to this really isn’t bad at all.

The guitar tones are perfectly fine, managing to have a little crunch and bite, which is more than you can say for a lot of the recent crop of pop punk. The twisting guitar lines featured on the opening to Give, and in the chorus of Weather are actually very enjoyable and, once again, show far more character than many of their peers in the genre. The drumming is proficient and drives the songs along nicely, even if they are a little low in the mix, but each time they lead down a road that just doesn’t seem to go anywhere.

MAYPINE do manage to avoid the terrible faux American accents that have crept into the genre, which is really refreshing to hear. The standout tracks are Weather and Together Alone and this is definitely a band with potential, as long as they can find their inner Patrick Stump and pull up some truly memorable vocal hooks to go along with the musical canvas they’ve created here.

Tom Butterworth

September 3, 2018

Hi, I'm Tom Butterworth. Born and raised in Northampton, resident in Liverpool for six years now. I've been obsessive about music for over ten years. My favourite bands include Nightwish, Death, Letlive, Slipknot,, The Menzingers, Gojira, Opeth and Pink Floyd among others. \m/

@little_tom13

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