I think I may have to start naming Tonight Alive as one of my favourite bands. I haven’t even known of their existence for a whole month, and already they’ve climbed to rank #33 on my Last.fm top artists chart, edging out a number of other bands I’ve been into for ages like Dethklok, OK Go, and Freezepop. This isn’t a huge achievement, because a lot of bands in that range only have between 200 and 300 plays, but considering that I prefer to listen to a range of music than the same few bands all the time, it’s not bad. And hey, the numbers don’t lie! They’re working their way up there.
You’ve probably never heard of Tonight Alive, and I wouldn’t blame you. They’re a relatively fresh group, having formed in 2008, and they haven’t had one of those silly “hit singles” in North America yet. But that’s okay. generally music that isn’t on the radio is better than music that is. I only stumbled onto them because I listened to Punk Goes Pop 4 on a whim, and was immediately smitten with Jenna McDougall’s voice. I looked up a handful of bands featuring on that album (Go Radio, Chunk! No Captain Chunk!, and For All Those Sleeping), but Tonight Alive has easily been the most popular with me.
So what are they all about? I suppose the easy answer, and indeed what drew me to them initially, is that they’re Australia’s Paramore. But that’s a stupid way to describe them, and doesn’t do justice to the band. Paramore is pretty great, especially Brand New Eyes, but Tonight Alive have plenty of their own style and substance to bring to the table.
I’ve really been getting into the modern punk scene lately, and while I do like the trend towards integrating post-hardcore and techno elements into the more traditional punk styles, I do have a very soft spot for some of the harder pop-punk, and that’s squarely where Tonight Alive sits. While they’re got the poppy energy and catchy hooks, their sound is also heavily dependent on some killer guitar riffs and a fairly heavy focus on the drumming. The combination of Jenna’s light, somewhat chirpy voice contrasts very nicely with the deeper, rougher instruments, and makes the music pop all that much more.
What Are You So Scared Of? would be a shoe-in if I were to elect a current favourite album, and I have a feeling that it’s going to become the third of my “comfort food” albums, which are the albums I turn to whenever I don’t know what else to listen to or just need something to assure me that there is good in the world. The other two are The Ataris’ So Long, Astoria and Jimmy Eat World’s Chase This Light, both matching up squarely with What Are You So Scared Of?‘s pop-punk aesthetic. These are the albums I will be listening to for the rest of my life, and they define me, my taste in music, and have helped to shape the way I view life and the world.
All Shapes and Disguises, is shorter, being an EP and all, lies a little more on the pop side of the spectrum, but I still quite like it. It’s also insanely well-produced for a self-funded debut EP. It’s clean and crisp, but doesn’t have that artificial “we edited it until it was perfect” tone to it. Also there’s a really sweet cover of Rufio’s “In My Eyes.” I don’t know the band Rufio, but you can be damn sure that I’m about to look them up!
Tonight Alive has also cited Thrice as a major influence, and anyone who likes Thrice is in my good books. Seriously. You could be a serial killer or cult leader and if you like Thrice I’ll still nod positively and think “that guy’s got pretty good taste in music.”
The only thing that makes me sad is that What Are You So Scared Of? was released less than a year ago, so it’s gonna be a bit of a wait before I get to hear any new material from these guys. I am frothing with anticipation.