Artist: I Can See Mountains
Album: Hope You Never Get It
Genre: Pop-punk
Label: [unsigned]

Fresh off their inclusion on our “Five Bands to Watch in 2012” list, I Can See Mountains are ready to unleash their fantastic debut EP on the world. It’s a frothy, enjoyable listen that’ll almost effortlessly bring a smile to your face, and even though some of their material still needs work there’s more than enough in these 29 minutes to convince you of the band’s potential for greatness.

Hope You Never Get It has seven tracks, all aching with something incandescent that’s trying to burst into life. The obviously limited resources at their disposal hold them back, with the vocals in particular still needing some work to gel properly with the music. Yet the band work hard and pack so much life and positivity into their material that it’s hard to imagine this being an issue for much longer. They’re growing carefully into their sound, and given a more overt opportunity to explode all should meld together nicely.

“Crossing the Delaware at the Museum of Modern Art” sets its sights high, a momentous opening track with a shuddering bass line and big build up. The resulting pop punk riff is a touch disappointing after the overture, but the spirited chords and harmonies are difficult to fault. This is a relatively lengthy and commanding opener, with a breathless energy that feeds affably into “Hey, Man.” The music here is a little smoother but sports the same youthful veneer of idealism. The vocals, as will be a recurrent theme throughout, are a little too pitchy to really thrive. This s is perhaps best evidenced in the chorus when harmony and lead vocal line don’t quite engage and give the song the feel of a demo as opposed to a finished product. This flaw, minor though it may be, is similarly exposed on succeeding track “Tournesol,” which takes a more laid-back and pensive approach. It makes for a frustrating listen at times, but the listener can discern progress even by the time the album ends – there’s an infectious determination to the way that play and this attitude will serve the band far better in the long run.

“I’m Really Going to Miss This Place” packs so much energy into its opening riffs that it almost drowns out the singing, but you can hear the band come into their own. There’s a good bridge and resounding chorus that evoke vivid and exciting indications of the kind of edge they’ll have with the right production. “The Stale Parade” is the sole dud note I’d single out on the record. Lyrically, it appears to address disillusionment and frustration and it accordingly takes a downcast approach in its music. The guitars are too muted for a band that seem to thrive on imagination and the song struggles to make an effective impact. The a-cappella verses are noteworthy, but it gets a little lost in its attempts to be something different.

“Dirt (My Buddy, My Pal)” is the most engaging song on the album, a rhythmic yet dreamily detached song that features a far fuller vocal line and impresses all the more for it. “The Search for Phil Cummings” saves the best til last however, executing a perfectly understated idea with atmospheric aplomb. There’s a rich undercurrent of fatigue and nostalgia to the vocals that in turn becomes exasperation, and this laconic singing seems to suit their grainy sound much more. The song’s subject matter gives it an easy, wistful appeal and it becomes more absorbing as it progresses with the resurgence of a group vocal lending it poignancy and focus. It may be seven minutes long, but you’d buy the album on the strength of this track alone.

Based on this evidence, I Can See Mountains shouldn’t remain in the basement for very long. I’m not exactly an avid pop-punk fan but the band deserve to have their efforts heard as widely as possible. Hope You Never Get It has a powerful force and imagination behind it that ought to propel them to the vanguard of their scene, and considering what they’ve managed to put together with such basic ingredients their talent ought to really shine in future releases.

SCORE: 8/10
Review written by Grace Duffy

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James Shotwell

James Shotwell is the founder of Under The Gun Review. He loves writing about music and movies almost as much as he loves his two fat cats. He's also the co-founder of Antique Records and the Marketing Coordinator for Haulix. You should probably follow him on Twitter.

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