Sparks The Rescue - Eyes To The Sun (2008)

Hailing from the unlikely locale of Portland, Maine, Sparks the Rescue nearly live up to their name on EYES TO THE SUN. Rather than rehash tired emo stereotypes common amongst their generation of power-chorders, this five-piece steers towards the driving, expertly produced pop-punk of latter-day Jimmy Eat World. Sure, vocalist Alex Roy emotes with a familiar nasal urgency, but guitarists Toby McAllister and Pat O’Connell demonstrate good muscular interplay, and the choruses are all go-for-broke anthem-baiters, rather than the screaming sing-alongs that bury so many peers in overwrought emotion. SUN is relentlessly fun, and should melt the most hardened pop-punkphobe’s resistance.© TiVo