Artist: City Lights
Album: In It to Win It
Genre: Pop-punk
Label: InVogue Records

The following is the Allmusic definition of pop-punk: “a strand of alternative rock, which typically merges pop melodies with speedy punk tempos, chord changes and loud guitars.” I would much rather refer to it as the bastardization of punk music. So much of pop punk is radio-friendly effluence that strips every veneer of respectability from its association with punk. It’s supposed to be irreverent and anarchic, a bit rogue, a bit in-your-face and have a lot to say. It’s not supposed to sound like something Nickelodeon would churn out if Hannah Montana discovered Stiff Little Fingers.

In It To Win It is a pop-punk album, and one that sounds like it came from a factory of standardised hokum too. To be fair, some of the lyrics on here are decent, in that they suggest self-empowerment or discovery and bettering yourself. But all that’s promising is mixed in with lots of crap about needing to see a certain girl’s face every day, and maybe it’s my cynical old age (of 23) working against me but I am tired of all of this bullshit. Grow up. Get over it. Whatever.

So, an exploration of merits. The imaginatively named “Intro” features rolling drums and your archetypal, predictably charged hollers of goodwill and empathy with the fellow man. It’s succeeded by “Hang Out,” which has an idealistic twinge to its youthful vocals, backed up by the heady bravado of group vocals during the chorus. The music is a bit lethargic but there are lots of harmonies and the lyrics made the rather charming suggestion that one spend time with their friends instead of obsessing over a girl. This will become beautifully ironic a few tracks later. “Please Let Me Know” continues the line in promising lyrical matter. They’re not exactly Pete Wentz standard in terms of vocal acrimony, but they make lots of amusing observations about talking crap on the internet and growing up so I can commend them for that. Allied to this is a temperate musical line that seems to aspire to something bigger but rarely follows through – it speeds up and intensifies slightly during the chorus and remains slower and more pensive for the verse.

The opening, tantalising glimpse of piano on “Where You’ve Been” is destroyed by a template rushing guitar riff. The vocals on this are quite awful, but once again the words themselves are excelling. It’s unfortunate that the band can’t dress up this skill in anything nicer, cos there’s literally nothing eloquent I can write about the music. It’s mere stock filler to back up the singing, competently realised but nothing more. Urgent drumming? Check. Insistent guitars? Check. Overactive hormones? Check.

All that said, “Trophy Room” has a good riff to open. There’s a bit more originality than you’d expect, though I wouldn’t go as far as to call it innovation. It descends into predictable territory with the verses, but there are some catchy moments and genuinely rather stark lyrics about insides hanging in a trophy room. Following my recent discovery of gastroschisis (don’t google image it, I pray you), this evokes pretty horrifying imagery. The music is upbeat and sunny and engaging enough, but its reliance on the trademarks of the genre still irk me. There’s so little character to this type of music, and very few bands display any flair or creativity. The insistence on being bland distilled nonsense that sounds like it’s been manufactured in a factory of mediocrity is exasperating.

“My Entire Life” and “Lawnmower” feature perfectly uninteresting music alongside oral fixations on a girl. “Just In Case” is alright, some kind of response to trash-talking by a nameless foe backed up with lots of surly gang vocals. “I Made A Song On Garage Band and All I Got Was A Lousy Record Deal” opens with an animated cry of “let’s go” yet doesn’t pick up until its bridge, which is quite catchy. “What It Takes” is the final song (bar an acoustic offering of “Lawnmower”) and evidently, they saved the best til last cos this is the album’s musical peak. It’s feisty and adamant and the guitars sound raucous and beautiful until they’re watered-down for the chorus. Had the rest of the record taken this approach, it’d work a lot better.

City Lights have a beautiful name that may or may not pay homage to a sweetly endearing Charlie Chaplain movie. However, their music needs a lot of work. Their lyrics offer some engaging and occasionally rather insightful material, but the pre-pubescent banality that comes with it is barely worth your time. If you’re into this genre, it ought to float your boat. If you’re not, my thoughts are above.

SCORE: 5/10
Review written by Grace Duffy

• Author
• Recent Posts

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.

Latest posts by James Shotwell (see all)

• 2015’s Most Underrated Films - December 29, 2015
• Passing The Torch: The End Of An Era For UTG - December 1, 2015
• UTG PREMIERE: Before The Streetlights – “Private Browser” - November 26, 2015