Pop punk has been having a moment in the past few years, experiencing a resurgence since it lorded over the pop music culture in the early 2000’s. And Pennsylvania’s The Wonder Years, who have been carrying the torch since the late aughts, are a huge part of that resurgence. It’s sort of funny to think how their career has transitioned over time– from young upstarts riding the wave of bands like The Starting Line and Blink-182 into now the elder statesmen of the pop punk scene.
2013’s The Greatest Generation is my favorite album of theirs for the simple reason that it encompasses all of elements that make the genre so appealing and fresh in its current iteration. The production is top-notch, the guitars heavy and tinged with nostalgia, and the rhythm section is absolutely on fire.
But the standout element here is lead singer and lyricist Dan Campbell, who has the innate ability to capture all of the passion of teen angst but deliver it in a way that feels meaningful and mature. Campbell’s voice is powerful and delicate at the same time, and his knack for storytelling is enthralling in so many ways even when covering the pop punk tropes the genre is known for. The album’s opener “There, There” has enough vivid imagery to bring you to tears remembering a moment in life when you were trying everything you could to find a solution for something that means the world to you, and yet the solution is just out of your reach no matter how hard you try.
Standout Songs: “There, There”, “The Bastards, The Vultures, The Wolves”, “Passing Through A Screen Door”
