Goalkeeper have been putting out pick-me-up pop punk for a few years now.
My first introduction to the band came when I was browsing a pop punk page on Facebook. It was a thread where people were dropping their Spotify links for people to check out.
So, I clicked on it.
My first exposure was their Gut Feeling single, which had three songs on it: Pong Partners, Leftovers, and Forgive Me.
I could hear some old school blink-182, mixed with a little Weezer, running through their music, so I decided to keep listening.
The Bad Times Don't Last EP was my first real jump onto the Goalkeeper bandwagon. The Philly/Jersey pop punkers had won me over. Songs like the opener Sunshine, and acoustic jam Lately, were just a couple of the highlights from the 2018 release.
Fast forward two years, and there was a bit of a buzz in the air. The band had been releasing some singles. The fact that Happy and Just Say It had similar artwork for the releases, it seemed something was on the horizon.
Now, here we are, and their new EP Life In Slow Motion is here, and it doesn't disappoint.
It's five songs of Goalkeeper goodness.
The opener is the aforementioned Just Say It, and it's a great way to start your 15 minute journey. A quiet start that leads in to a snare roll before kicking the record off into the stratosphere.
Graveyard is the second track, and third single off the album. Starting with a guitar riff soaked in chorus, the drums come in and drive you to the chorus. in typical Goalkeeper fashion, that chorus punches you in the face with hooks.
Black & Blue is a straight up early 00s pop punk jam. It would fit alongside any of your favourites from bands like New Found Glory, MXPX, and The Starting Line.
'We're getting stuck in the same old story/We know the end and it's getting boring/I won't let this end badly/I just want you to be happy'. Break-up songs never sounded as nice as the song Happy.
This Is Fine brings us to the closer on the record. I love when a band knows how to construct an end to an album, and I think Goalkeeper accomplish that here. It gets out of the gate with speed, but when it hits the chorus it switches to half-time with massive guitars. 'I'd rather fall asleep with a cigarette/on a couch soaked in gasoline/Because at least I'll know what it feels like to burn/and I'll know if I can feel something'.
Listening to this band puts a smile on my face. They don't shy away with the tough realities life can bring, but they also don't seem to get stuck or wallow in that self pity. They are very much a band that will pick themselves up, and they'll bring you along with them.
For more new music, check out our review of the latest album from FigureItOut.
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