It’s summer, and it’s still raining outside, but it’s summer nonetheless. Sunny summer days need sunny summer soundtracks, and on their last effort (‘Even On The Worst Nights’) Mixtapes nailed that soundtrack pretty much spot on. Now the American punk band are back with their follow up 3rd album entitled ‘Ordinary Silence’ with the hope to deliver much of the same Summer anthems. They do to an extent, but for me, ‘Ordinary Silence’ falls short of it’s predecessor.

By no means is ‘Ordinary Silence’ a bad album, but it doesn’t feel consistent in a sense – it switches from monotony to excellence every few minutes, instead of providing a solid listening experience. The majority of songs sound similar, and occasionally it’s difficult to distinguish between them, and this is because each song follows a very similar formula – verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, chorus. Normally this wouldn’t be an issue, but Mixtapes keep to this formula maybe too much, and the album lacks any solid sense of variety as a result. The dual lyrics, honed as ever, lessen from the issue by adding another dimension to the songs, but after the first six tracks I found myself growing bored, which for a pop-punk album is never a good thing.

‘Ordinary Silence’ does follow genre conventions superbly and that’s it’s strongest point. It’s what we’ve come to expect from pop-punk bands with dual sex vocalists, and if this is what you go into the album expecting you’ll probably finish it satisfied. It just doesn’t have the polish and songs of the caliber that Mixtapes have proved in the past that they can release. To me, ‘Ordinary Silence’ just sounds flat and occasionally lackluster. Mixtapes have found what works for them, and do it well, but just not as well as they have previously. It’s still catchy and well written, fast and energetic, but it all sounds too familiar.

As far as shallow music goes, Mixtapes have produced a fun album that still meets expectations but doesn’t have any real depth. Obviously, if you just want to listen to this album with friends and drink a few beers then it’s spot on, but for anything more than it it isn’t suited, and is a step backwards for the band as far as I’m concerned.

Rating – 6/10