Bad Luck. – Summer Of Pain

Instantly likeable, Summer Of Pain is aptly titled, as there is an immediate upbeat fairweather feel from opening track Favorite Smile, even if Bad Luck. hail from sunny Brooklyn – not a part of the world associated necessarily with this kind of breezy punk pop vibe.

Occasionally there are hints of their predecessors. ROY‘s waltzing coda could easily be an uncharacteristically happy My Chemical Romance. But the band’s personality is never compromised by these comparisons. This is a crowded niche and to stand out, bands need to have an extra something. Bad Luck. have all the standard punk pop flavours at their disposal, but their special sauce is the way that they can distil the full range pf the human condition with all its highs and lows into one distinctive taste. Always tuneful, they’re often experimental. Frequent, for instance, is virtually only impassioned vox and jangling guitar, underscored with some discreet organ. It’s a song that leaves you hanging for a crashing full band chorus that never comes. Required Thinking is more standard jolly fare but then the chugging IDC changes gear again to add to what adds up to a joyful uncertainty about what coming next. To compound matters, High Pick waltzes back into ¾ time. Deja Voodoo Doll, with its smart switches from major to minor chords is an excellent closer and possibly the strongest track of a strong collection.

All in all, a first-class photo album of that summer when love was won and lost. By turns happy, sad, wistful but never not good. This is an album that manages the conjuring trick of sounding comfortably familiar but also brand new and fresh. This is a band that have honed their craft and have produced an album of fine songs that does them immense credit. The song-writing and arrangement is superb, there are some serious moments but all wrapped up into one upbeat package. Smart but not clever-clever, affecting but not soppy. I’ll be playing this all summer. Ace.

Summer Of Pain by Bad Luck is out now on Take This To Heart Records.