Album Review :
Man Alive "Access Denied" Ep

Artist: Man Alive
Album: Access Denied ep
Label: Smith 7
Review by: Brandon Jones

Tracklist:
1. Proud to Be Unamerican
2. You Got Game
3. Dying Breed
4. I Won’t Lie Down
5. Worth Every Penny

Unapologetic straight forward punk rock that thrives in melody and passion. This is music that is right up my alley and songs that you can sing along with. Music without the makeup and Halloween dress up parade. This is straight ahead punk rock that dabbles in emotion, melody, and fist pumping anthems designed to enlight the listener.

The album starts off with the strong opener, “Proud to Be Unamerican” that lyrically isn’t what you’d think it would be. This song is a heart beat heavy anthem about the wayward styles of youth and their desire to be anti-everything, specifically the trendy “Proud to be Unamerican”. You got game is up next and is another melody heavy punk rocker leading the way to “Dying Breed” which I believe is about the dying breed of genre styles and the trends of youth. Genre hopping youth and their fickle nature. We all know what that means and what it holds true for our music scene. This leads us all to the album highlight, well at least for me anyway. “I Wont Lie Down” is a Face to Face cover and one of my all time favorite songs (the original). Most of you kids wont recognize the song being as it originates in 1996, but I sure do. I was just out of High School when the original hit my stereo and it holds alot of memories for me. Nostalgia. The band pulls off this cover in well executed brilliance. It’s the perfect cover and even better than the Spoken version done back in 01′ (go look for that one). This cover track alone is enough reason to buy this 5 song ep. “Worth Every Penny” finishes the album up and is a fairly short song clocking in at around 2 and a half minutes.

All in all, this album is a fine 5 song sample of new Man Alive and a great introduction for any fan of the punk rock genre. If you’ve been searching for bands that carry the banner of pop punk/skate punk and have not found any for years, look no further. Man Alive is a perfect representation of a genre bleeding itself to sleep. They breath new life into the punk rock style and bring along enough passion to last years and years. I love Man Alive and I think you will too after just a couple listens.

Score: 8/10
For the fan of: Face to Face, Much the Same, Ryan’s Hope, Hangnail, Ace Troubleshooter, Useless I.D., Allister

Buy Album Here