Remember Right Now

Spitalfield are back with Remember Right Now, once again posing the musical question, "How melodic can melodic punk get and still reasonably be considered punk?" Of course, the only rational response to that question is "Who cares?," which is why we're not even going to discuss the glockenspiel that keeps popping up on the bridge during "Those Days You Felt Alive." Instead we'll focus on those irresistible hooks, those delirious harmonies, those big fat crunchy guitars, those sometimes-just-a-bit-too-dewy-eyed lyrics ("It's a brand new day/You've got someone to be/And that someone is you"). Given their age, it's no surprise that these guys seem mainly obsessed with questions about what life holds in store for them ("Stolen from Some Great Writer," "In the Same Lifetime," "Am I Ready?") and the incomprehensible vagaries of romantic love ("Make My Heart Attack," "Those Days You Felt Alive"), but you can tell they're growing up because they obviously feel something other than blind rage. In fact, they don't sound angry at all, even when their friends betray them and their girlfriends confuse them. It must be the joy of making music this hooky, harmonious and fun.