The Run Up

I love punk rock bands like this.
Bands that manage to do it right, providing just the right amount of passion and energy to their music to create a spectacle of raw, unbridled emotion. High octane in all the right places, while never unnecessarily overcomplicating proceedings.
On first listen, I was reminded of The Gaslight Anthem, and their EP "Senor and the Queen." Not as a direct consequence of the style so much. They are somewhat similar at times, but I'm addressing attitude. The title track on that EP started suddenly. Drums promptly kicked in, followed by Brian Fallon and the rest boys with their instruments.
This album has a similar energy, and that energy suits their chosen band name without reservation.

Formed in Bristol, England in the summer of 2014, The Run Up have had a good couple of years. Their first album came out in 2017, to quite high acclaim. This, the follow-up EP, is a tremendous effort.

"We decided on "Good Friends, Bad Luck" because of the amount of shitty luck we've had on the road recently, with our van breaking down, missing shows and even getting robbed of our wheels on a dual carriageway in Germany," Vocalist Larry Bernard said. "We are super lucky to have each other to rely on to make the best of bad situations."

This attitude can be found across every track on this EP.
Lyrical content describing overcoming hardships, friendships, and sticking to your beliefs and remaining true to yourself encapsulate the five tracks of this EP, and it's nice to hear some positivity in an age where that is turning into a mythological thing.

Vocalist Larry Bernard sings about these topics with sincere honesty. He has a surprisingly good voice providing a throaty growly style at times, while also hitting a varied range musically. Superb vocal harmonies are also provided, and this adds to the positively anthemic nature of these tracks. The guitar work from Charlie Parsons and Laurence Nelson is also excellent. Never overly intricate or dramatic, but effective and providing just the right element to each track, something else which at times was reminiscent of some of the Gaslight Anthems early work. The distortion and reverb used sounds brilliant and is at times very similar to that of New Found Glory and MxPx. If you like them, this band will be for you.

This band has a very tight rhythm section, and Daniel Bakers bass can be heard well and never gets hidden amongst the raw distortion. Harry Holder is superb on drums, adding tight aggression to the tracks while at times allowing himself some freedom with some interesting time signatures and fills. Especially interesting in track 4, "Eternal Ghost."
Straight away during the instrumental opener "Good Friends, Bad Luck," it can be heard that this is going to a great few songs, it's just a shame it ends so soon. I found myself needing to put it back on again. Worth checking out, they will be huge.
Catch them on tour with The Moms during September and October if you can.

"Good Friends, Bad Luck" will be released through Real Ghost Records and Uncle M on September 28th