Emily’s Army – Don’t Be A Dick

Emily’s Army has a lot going for them and a lot going against them. Aging between 15 and 17, it’s easy to shove them off as immature and childish right from the start. The fact that they were produced by Billie Joe Armstrong who released them on his Adeline Records may make you stop and say “hey, maybe these guy have something in them to grab Armstrong’s attention.” Then you find out that the reason they grabbed his eye is simple really: the drummer is Armstrong’s son.

So they’re too young and the only reason they have caught the eye of Adeline is the familial relationship. Those two facts can easily make you write off Emily’s Army right from the start.  If you do though, you’ll be missing out on a damn fun, crappy pop-punk album.

For when it comes down to it, that’s what Don’t Be A Dick is. Yes, it is widely immature but that immaturity makes the inner sixteen in you pogo up and down in excitement. Songs like Asslete detail the band’s growing disdain with professional athletes, Broadcast This derails the horror of top-40 radio and Ho-lloween is rather self explanatory. There’s a few tracks that are slightly more cerebral, Statutory Brain Rape about the video game’s industry influence on society and Bad Cop is strangely political like a Star Fucking Hipster song with a pop-punk twist.

The songs are well structured in the pop-punk vein, like early Green Day (and, some may say, way better than new Green Day). They have elements of Outl4w, Orange and maybe a dash of The Buzzcockstoo and even though all three of those bands come from the UK – Emily’s Army still has a distinctive west-coast, Californian feel to it. Some newer references could be The Frantic but really they’re seeped in the classic 924 Gilman Street sound through and through. Dual vocals sing in harmony with one another overtop of the straight forward, three chord punk and while being far from revolutionary, Don’t Be A Dickis still extremely (and surprisingly) enjoyable.

There are moments, other than in the lyrics, that they begin to show their age as 14 songs is rather long for a debut. But at thirty-five minutes, the songs are short and sweet and those few fillers or missteps are able to be passed over with ease.

So those searching for a fun jaunt through memory lane, look no further than Emily’s Army; for within Don’t Be A Dick, you’ll find a pop-punk record that reminds you of when you first got into the sound way back in high school. And who’s better to remind you of that time then a bunch of kids still in high school themselves?