Over the past year or so, I've seen the end of an upsetting number of my favourite bands. The first end that sticks poignantly in my mind is the band Trophy Wife. However, in the months after that, Save Your Breath, The Swellers, The Maccabees and Arcane Roots followed and now here we are at Balance & Composure and I am truly upset.

I know I don't often do EP reviews but after putting together a list of some of my most memorable EPs from last year; it's about time I started giving attention where due, so along that train of thought... enter MAYPINE. Pop punk band based in Brighton, UK bringing you that South Cali Pop Punk and oh so effortlessly.

Right off the bat, lead single "A Little Sooner" is a song that gives every member of the band a chance to shine. Every now and again you hear songs or albums that rely on a specific member to carry the band; none of that here. As the EP opener, it's a strong start and a blinding display of the band's potential. Following on with "North/South Divide" - an instant favourite of mine - Jason's vocal performance on this track in particular blew me away. Also, there are little pockets throughout that reminded me of The Swellers which is never a bad thing.

"Inside Out" and "Never Far Apart" add that sweet middle ground to the EP giving us a bit of acoustics whilst also adding in the fast-paced rhythmic riffs that we've begun to associate with bands like Neck Deep. It's between "Day After Day" and "North/South Divide" for my top spot at the moment. From start to finish on "Day After Day" I'm hearing riffs that I haven't heard and have been waiting to hear for a very long time, I'm hearing varied vocals, I'm hearing creative drum fills. I mean there's not much that I can fault on this one. A strong opener and a strong closer; In The Back Of My Mind is the best first impression that I've had the pleasure of listening to in a while.

This would be an awesome album to hear/see live. Already described as "one of the most exciting new pop-punk bands in the UK", MAYPINE show you why with just five tracks. For any artist, and upcoming artists in particular, it's important to release music that they'll be proud of and happy to stand behind, and I don't expect that MAYPINE will be having any trouble with this one. Head over to Deadbolt Festival in Manchester this August to hear this all played live and grab the EP when it comes out on the 4th of August.

Overall Rating - 8/10 

So, I've been following The Swellers since 2010 and have not been able to see them once since until late last month at their last ever UK show in Brighton. It's so bittersweet to even be writing this. After waiting all that time just to see them live and it's at their farewell show! Well better late than never I suppose.

The first of the three support acts was a local band from Brighton called River Jumpers. A four-piece of homegrown pop punk goodness. I really enjoyed their set. The sound wasn't great but you could hear the potential of the tracks nonetheless and I particularly liked their single "All Our Histories". I'll definitely be keeping an ear out for these guys.

Second in line was three-piece US punk band The Gamits. I hadn't heard of them before and to be honest it was hard enough to track down their Facebook page but I'm glad I did because they were interesting. Face paced and engaging tracks. I'd advise checking out their bandcamp for some of their jams because if you like pop punk they should be up your street. Cool band, cool guys.

Finally, supporting was Only Rivals. I actually caught Only Rivals supporting on the Pop Punk's Not Dead Tour a while back and so was looking forward to watching them smash it again. Unfortunately I had to step out during their set and so did not catch the entire thing but I have no doubts that they impressed. If you haven't already, give these guys a listen - hardworking and entertaining band.

To be honest, even as I'm writing this now, I slightly can't believe that I got to see The Swellers live. It was all so surreal, and fast paced. Everything just happened and before I knew it the show was over. They opened up with the first song I ever heard of theirs - "Runaways" and from that moment onwards, I was just elated. Killer tune and of course even better live. When you've imagined a song live so many times in your own head it's nice to actually see what it looks like in real life. There were a couple of songs that they played that I was less familiar with but for the most part, they played a setlist jam packed with favourites. I do wish that the crowd was more into it or maybe just a little bit more expressive. It was their last ever show and I was expecting a party vibe. At one point Nick even said that the crowd seemed full of people in "the industry" that were a bit "too cool" to get hyped up but then I suppose there's only so much that you can ask of less than 100 people. This didn't phase me too much though, I was just standing at the stage, overwhelmed. Some favourites that they played were "Do You Feel Better Yet?", "Got Social", "2009" and "Ups And Downsizing" and the fact that they ended with "Running Out Of Places To Go" and "The Best I Ever Had" just sealed off that chapter perfectly. I am going to miss this band sorely but at least they've left us with lots of classic albums to listen to in their absence. Very special farewell show for me. Swellers... thank you.

Overall Rating - 8/10


Here are some pictures from the night....

Yet again, I'm a latecomer to the show. I'd actually had a song by Balance And Composure saved on my "Watch Later" list on YouTube for a good few months and it wasn't until last week when I actually decided to go through the list that I stumbled across this awesome song...

BALANCE AND COMPOSURE - Lost Your Name

After I heard this track I had to listen to the whole album pretty much straight away. The song was just wedged in my head for ages, as soon as it was over. I'm always excited when new pop punk/rock band/artist enters my life (especially when it's this good) and I tend to overplay it a bit but luckily with this band I had two albums to play through and a few EPs. Now that I've listened through all of their stuff at least once, I can say with the most confidence, that this is a band that you need to check out if you're into pop punk/rock, even if you're not! Even if you're just interested in music, definitely give them a listen. Hats off to No Sleep Records for coming out with awesome artists like The Swellers, La Dispute, The Wonder Years and of course Balance And Composure.