American pop-punk four piece Veara haven’t had much rest recently, with the previous four months consisting of non-stop Vans Warped Tour dates plus a US tour with Cartel all finally culminating in the release of their upcoming full length ‘Growing Up Is Killing Me’ through Epitaph Records on September 24th. They’re not stopping there, either. Starting on September 21st the band head out on a US tour is support of their new album which takes them right up until October 17th when just a few weeks later they’re off to Australia for the international leg of Warped Tour. This week I got to find out if their latest record represents them as well as their work ethic does, and although I enjoyed it, it’s not without it’s issues.
I feel like ‘Growing Up Is Killing Me’ could have been 14-year-old-me’s favourite album. Which can, of course, be taken one of two ways. Either Veara are around 7 years too late with this album or they are a band that executes an older era of pop punk so perfectly that I feel reminiscent and nostalgic about it, even though it’s being released in the very week that I’m listening to it for the first time. Personally, I think it’s the latter. I do, however, worry that there’s a chance of the majority of listeners taking it as the former. Veara have successfully nailed a sound that has already been perfected in the past. Four Year Strong, New Found Glory, All Time Low, The Wonder Years, Set Your Goals… they’re all in there somewhere, and I really could go on with more. Unfortunately for Veara, you need to do more than mash up the best parts of previously successful bands to ultimately become just as successful yourself. With the previously mentioned influences, among others, shining brightly through each song, any original touch Veara might have wanted to imprint on their record are slightly overshadowed.
I’d like to mention at this point that I do really enjoy this record. Instrumentally, the whole record is extremely tight and I would assume the band put on quite a live show due to this reason. The songs, more often than not, feature incredibly catchy hooks, most notably ‘No More Secrets‘, ‘The Worst Part Of You‘ and the title track ‘Growing Up Is Killing Me’ which features a slightly gimmicky guest appearance from Dan ‘Soupy’ Campbell of The Wonder Years fame. I mean, I don’t want to be too dismissive about his input on the song but what I will say is that he seemingly adds nothing that Veara vocalist Bradley Wyrosdick couldn’t have added himself… other than, of course, the words “Soupy from The Wonder Years” popping up on every review and news story about the record.
In summary, although the album does an extremely good job of showcasing an already established sound of pop punk, the lack of originality lets it down a little. Veara have played it safe when writing this album, which might sound like bad thing on paper but the truth is; it’s actually resulted in a very good album. This review might not read as a 4 out of 5, but in the end I think it depends on how much originality matters to you. For me personally, as long as it done as well as this, I don’t mind if it’s been done before. If any of the bands mentioned in this review are your kind of thing I would urge you to check this record out upon release.
4/5
’Growing Up Is Killing Me’ by Veara is out now on Epitaph Records
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Words by Joe Hart (@nottheJoeHart)
