Mixtapes – Hope is for People [7inch]

Ahh Mixtapes – it’s rarely a month or so over the last two years where we haven’t been introduced to a new song from the Cincinnati quartet. These quick bursts of pop-punk are always greeted with excitement and joy and just mere months after their prior release,their new six song 7 inch – Hope is For People – is no different.

Released in a nicely packaged vinyl that looks like a Homer Simpson donut courtesy of Animal Style Records, Hope is For People kicks off where Castle Songs ended with a minute and thirty seconds long opener Taking A Year Off. Fast, poppy and unbelievable energetic, the male-female vocals harmonize over the roaring opener and you know you’re in for the classic Mixtapes pop-punk sound.

The titular track slows it down a bit, beginning with a softer acoustic introduction before breaking into the full blown electronic band with a blast for the second verse. The introspective song sees the band looking back at themselves like they so often do with an insanely memorable bridge of “We might fall/we might sink / we might die / but I think / that’s the point / so what? / If we try, it’s good enough.”

They keep the acoustic turned electronic structure on You’d Better Bring More Dudes, a song that sees Maura Weaver take the vocal lead over Ryan Rockwell and lacks a certain punch at the start but does picks up once the band kicks in. Where I Live harkens back to their split with Direct Hit!. It’s not the most inventive but definitely doesn’t fall because of that. Weaver takes the lead on the more straight forward punk rock The New Ride The Lighting and shows a heavier side to their pop-punk sound that is missing on some of their other songs.

As it is, Hope Is For People is just more proof that Mixtapes know what they’re doing. With so many songs under their belts in such a little time, you think they’d become tiresome after a while – but they don’t. It’s clear that this Cincinnati foursome is having fun and you can’t really help but have fun with them.