After Several EP releases and years of writing, the Toronto Easy-Core band Like Pacific will release a brand new album, Distant Like You Asked on February 19th. Compared to many other bands in their genre, Like Pacific breaks free from the mold of writing about clichés, and sticks to creating music that is fresh and new, with an early 2000’s pop punk vibe. Like Pacific have been previously compared to bands such as Knuckle Puck and Seaway, however with this latest release they have separated themselves from the pack and have created a sound with a bit of a heavier edge. Frontman Jordan Black’s unique voice has a slightly edgier sound than most vocalists in the scene, separating Like Pacific from similar acts. Overall Distant Like You Asked is an incredible album, a fresh new sound that is exactly what the pop punk scene needs right now.
So many bands have recently released albums that instrumentally just feel messy and unfinished, however Like Pacific is definitely not one of those bands. Distant Like You Asked instrumentally is fun and rhythmic, but aggressive and fast paced all at the same time. It once seemed that pop punk was starting to become one of those genres that just hit a wall, and wasn’t really going anywhere. Like Pacific is a fresh take on what was becoming a pretty stagnate genre
Vocally this album is incredible, the layering of vocals gives each track a larger than life feel. Vocalist Jordan Black’s range is amazing, one second he’s aggressively belting out a chorus, and the next he showcases a bit of a softer side, seamlessly transitioning between the two. Songs like Richmond and Chine Drive are two great songs that showcase his incredible vocal ability.
Needless to say, it has been come quite apparent that Pop Punk as a genre has become quite predictable, many bands were just rehashing the same cliché nonsense over and over. It was starting to feel like bands were taking ques from Jarrod Alonge videos for inspiration. Like Pacific have taken much needed risks with this album, and have given Pop Punk a fresh new sound that people have been long awaiting for. Distant Liked You Asked is exciting and innovative, it’s everything pop punk should be. If you’ve never given Like Pacific a listen, you can check out Distant Like You Asked February 19th.
