Guildford based band The Getaway Team formed in mid 2006, producing a brand of energetic music which blends the genres of pop punk and indie. It’s an excellent mix I must say, I’m a fan of both of these genres and this band certainly captures the energy and excitement of both to perfection. ‘Haven’t You Heard…’ is a pop heavy display of brilliance from The Getaway Team, five tracks are put on display for all to hear here and all impress hugely. Not once does this band sound anything short of sensational on this release, the music is highly energetic and there’s definitely a large focus here on having fun. The music is bouncy and you get a genuine sense that the bands members are enjoying it all, it’s a warm and welcoming sound and all five of these tracks have absolutely fantastic choruses.
The EP begins impressively with ‘I Regret’, there is no build up here whatsoever; the vocals kick in instantly and right from the offset this band grabs your full undivided attention. Although all of the tracks on this release possess a definite pop punk influence, this is perhaps the purest pop punk display here and I for one absolutely love it. Pop punk has always been a favourite genre of mine and I have to say that The Getaway Team do this sound a lot better than most. A great deal of enthusiasm and genuine enjoyment is required to pull off pop punk tracks I feel, The Getaway Team here have no problems with this and as such the music comes across excellently.
‘Not What I Signed Up For’ has a lot more of an indie feel about it, the mood changes in this one and a definite shift in sound of the guitars can here be heard. This track comes complete with Futureheads style outbursts of ‘oh oh oh’, it has a familiar feel about it and comes across well. It’s not the most original track in the world, it’s done well however and has a supreme powerpop energy running through the heart of it all. Always the bands choruses are brilliant, not once does the music fail in this department on this release and always in fact this area of the music is entirely excellent.
‘Lost All Hope’ is reminiscent of The Ordinary Boys in its approach, the guitar riff that leads into this track is shockingly similar in fact and vocally the chorus comes across fairly familiarly also. It all seems a little stolen, again however the track impresses and this is definitely another one from this release that definitely deserves a listen. The music is fun, the approach is energetic and always this band makes the sound produced interesting through its upbeat nature. The members of this band actually met whilst attending The Academy of Contemporary Music (ACM) in Surrey, seemingly they all shared a similar passion for music and vision for what sound they wished to create. There’s a great unity with which the five members of this band put the music across, the music is played by the band as one unit and all contributing parties play together perfectly.
The track that ends it all here is ‘Make Pretend’, it’s slow to get going but eventually it does so and does in fact turn out to be quite an impressive little number to finish this release on. Once more the band here possesses a great indie energy, the sound is not the most original you will ever hear but it’s effective nonetheless. There’s something quite unnerving about the way in which the vocals bounce happily through the line of ‘Haven’t you heard that the world’s about to end’, it works though and you find yourself smiling along to the music before realising what the band is saying and suddenly becoming a little shocked. The music is light hearted and fun, it’s effective pop music which combines beautifully the genres of pop punk and indie. The sound that The Getaway Team produces is a lot of fun, music that is perfect to sing and dance along to.
The music of The Getaway Team will never change the world, it will however put a smile on the face of many and I’m sure that there are plenty out there that will thoroughly enjoy the bouncy pop tones of this bands music. There is a definite focus here on having fun, perfect pop music for playing aloud on a warm summers day. With the bands B-sides featuring titles such as ‘Going To A Gay Bar, Will Be The Straightest Thing You Ever Did’, I feel that the fun and light hearted nature of the music is explicitly displayed for all to see and is really rather self explanatory. For those that like their pop music to be fun and upbeat, the music of The Getaway Team should be seen as essential listening. Pop punk opens this EP, indie rears its head throughout, and always the music is greatly enjoyable to listen to with hugely impressive melodies always present, and astronomically catchy choruses attached to all five of these excellent pop songs.
Label: Easy Tiger
Release Date: 12th May 2008
Rating:
UK based film graduate with a huge passion for music, sports and video games.
