Lucky Boys Confusion
How To Get Out Alive EP

Lucky Boys Confusion - How To Get Out Alive EP

With the implosion of Elektra Records, Lucky Boys Confusion found themselves without a label and bursting with creative energy. The Illinois quintet formed their own imprint, Townstyle Records, in the meantime, and decided to record a 5-track EP titled How To Get Out Alive. Lucky Boys Confusion thrives off grandiose, sugary hooks and edgy instrumental parts, make no mistake about it. The band plays pop punk, but it has a little something extra to set this EP apart from those generic contemporaries of theirs. The lyrics are insightful, powerful, and well written; something you rarely see on a pop punk disc of any length. 

An oft-wandering bass line and well-placed gang vocals that lend themselves to a bit of a crunchier sound as opposed to sweetness characterize “The Struggle (Getting Out Alive). Quite an opener to this EP. Track two, “Cigarettes,” without a doubt merits inclusion on any summer mix CDs because of its Ocean Avenue qualities. Powerful but light and accessible with introspective yet naïve lyrics, “Cigarettes” is guaranteed to make an impact on even the toughest listener. This is what pop punk in the summertime should be. “When Bad New Gets Worse” continues in a similar fashion, evoking memories of The Ataris in the So Long, Astoria era with its blissfully upbeat and smooth sound. The last two songs (“Like Rats From a Sinking Ship” and “Anything, Anything”) each have their potent qualities. The former takes a catchy chorus about life in a big city and buries it so far into your brain that you will be singing it for weeks. The latter is the most chaotic song on How To Get Out Alive. Not quite hardcore punk, and barely even to the point of shouting, it takes an edgy instrumental showing from the band to transform “Anything, Anything” into a winner.

Lucky Boys Confusion won’t win a ton of style points for originality, but in pop punk, who does? Instead, they focus on trying to put out the best five-song offering they can—no frills, no fluff—just pure pop punk in time for summer vacation. How To Get Out Alivedeserves a listen from all of Punchline and Ocean Avenue-era Yellowcard fans; you might just find five more songs to keep you dancing all the way until school starts again.

This article was originally published on AbsolutePunk.net