Frontside are a North Carolina based trio of like-minded musicians formed in 2008 who tell us that: “The band came together with the common goal — to create music that would not only be catchy for any listener but would also satiate their urge to add a more technically impressive dimension to their songs.” That sounds amazing, but the question is, do they reach their goal? Their new EP Closer to Closure just came out, so it’s time to find out.

The EP opens up with ‘Give It Up’ whose introduction has you wondering what you are to expect. A buildup that has you tapping your toes with anticipation before the fast drums call in the vocal element. There is an excellent combination of singing complemented with some screaming. The real beauty of this song is everything else, though, to the point where you could easily enjoy it if it were instrumental. Not that there’s anything wrong with the vocals; they just aren’t the crowning glory.

Next up, we have ‘Smith’ this song is catchy and reminds me of a few pop-punk bands’ early tracks. You’d be forgiven for letting your imagination run away with you and picture hearing it live and knowing it would be fun to experience it that way. ‘Einstein Killed Me’ is up after that and is an enjoyable song with some great guitar work. 

The stand-out track on this EP actually feels like the next one, ‘Take Heed’, which kicks in with some attractive drumming. You will undoubtedly find yourself nodding along if not dancing. Perhaps it’s a little more upbeat musically than the previous tracks, and maybe it just hits the right note with us. 

Closing out with ‘Monstro’, another great anticipatory introduction with some racing drums throughout the song. It feels a little more old school than the previous track and closes out the album with some nice gang vocals. Who doesn’t love a sing-along!

All in all, this EP is a great taste of what is to come from a band which have surely got a promising future ahead of them. You can get the EP now on Revival Recordings, and our advice is to go ahead and do exactly that. It’s 19 minutes of old fashioned, honest music produced for the sake of making good material with no other motive.