NECK DEEP // Life’s Not Out To Get You

Neck Deep – Life’s Not Out To Get You
(Hopeless/UNFD)

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“It’s hard not to feel like Neck Deep could well be this generation’s New Found Glory if they stay on the same path.”

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Pop -punk and hating the town you grew up in go hand in hand. It’s surprising then that Neck Deep take the opposite approach on their second album Life’s Not Out To Get You. Lead single Can’t Kick Up The Roots is a catchy tongue in cheek dedication to the band’s hometown as lead singer Ben Barlow cries out “This place is a shipwreck/but this shipwreck is mine.” For anyone that’s familiar with the band’s debut Wishful Thinking it should come as no surprise that almost every song on the album packs sing-along choruses. Jeremy McKinnon’s (A Day To Remember) guidance isn’t a shock on this front; with one of the masters of popular hooks at the helm, you’re bound to get kids involved. The lyrics are purpose built for teenagers to scream to, but they’re at least full of parental-friendly rebellion rather than Barlow calling his ex- expletives. Kali Ma is a case in point, with the gang vocals singing “go to hell” serving more as self empowerment than vindictiveness. Finding common ground is at the heart of the genre, and Neck Deep know exactly how to make their audience feel like they’re singing just to them. During the longingly acoustic December, even the most content listener will catch themselves sombrely singing “I’m the last thing you remember/it’s been a long lonely December.” By the time the end of album closer Rock Bottom rolls around with Barlow’s So-Cal imitation vocals fading out, it’s hard not to feel like Neck Deep could well be this generation’s New Found Glory if they stay on the same path.

For fans of: New Found Glory, Blink-182, Real Friends
Standout Tracks: Citizens of Earth, December, Can’t Kick Up The Roots

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Read our interview with Neck Deep vocalist Ben Barlow here!

WATCH: The video for Can’t Kick Up The Roots