Bowling For Soup – ‘Songs People Actually Liked – Volume 1 – The First 10 Years (1994-2003)’ [Review]
Punchy and poignant punk-pop songs painted in primary colours on a pitch-black background. That’s a lot of alliteration – but it’s also an accurate way of summarising Bowling For Soup’s considerable back catalogue.
Bowling For Soup are punk-pop legends for a reason. On the surface, their songs are easily accessible and stand right on the brink of being disposable. But none of the tracks in this collection fall over the edge, thanks to a rare emotional depth and a wealth of genuinely awesome hooks that, well, get you hooked immediately and will never let you go.
Trust me, it’s true. Girl All The Bad Guys Want was one of the first pop-punk songs to get my then-rap-metal-addicted ears into the spirit of songs that could be undeniably angsty without invoking nu-metal’s trademark “Fuck you Mum and Dad, I never asked to be born!” attitude – and I have little doubt that countless others across the rock-loving world experienced something similar. And let’s face it – we all had to learn sooner or later that it was okay for kids to wear clothes that weren’t just plain black.
With Valentine’s Day coming up, many a punk-loving dude is going to need at least one of these songs. Whether it’s a girl with turntables in her eyes who’s ignoring you in favour of the David Guetta wannabe who DJs down your local pub, a girl called Emily, or an anonymous stone-hearted bitch, Bowling For Soup have you covered. And if you’re unlucky enough to have a bitchy ex called Emily who recently left you for a prick who never leaves the house without a pair of Beats headphones glued over his ears, this greatest hits collection might just save your life.
TMMP RATING: 95%
Links
Songs People Actually Liked – Volume 1 drops on January 26th.
Bowling For Soup official website.
Follow TMMP on Twitter for more awesome music.