Punk has always had a certain amount of pop in its DNA. That’s not to say that it errs on the side of the light, throwaway, or sugary—anything but. But it does mean that it knows how to write a good hook, get the audience moving, start the party, and foreshadow memorable salvos and sing-along choruses.
I know this to be true because I have just listened to the new EP from Go Betty Go, and it certainly shows that they know how to do these things, and do so without seeming to break a sweat.
Any band that kicks off an album with a song as good as “Keep Up” might be considered to be front-loading their record, simply putting their best foot forward. In the case of Black & Blue, this opening salvo is just the band setting an early benchmark, one that, arguably, they keep raising as they move through this handful of short, sharp, and shockingly great songs.
“Party At Sea” reminds us that punk can be clever, even while being bold and brash, incendiary and intense. Here, they do so by blending big punk salvos with buoyant party (natch) anthemics. “Fuzzy” is a pop song in overdrive, half 50’s do-wop tune, half snarling punk attitude, and “Am I To Blame” is the sort of punk-rock cross-over that Joan Jett would have killed for back in the day.
Black & Blue is punk at its finest – well crafted, contagious, melodic yet built on muscle, consistently powerful, and often poised. One day, all punk bands will sound like this. (Yeah, they wish!)
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