ALBUM: Neck Deep– ‘Life’s Not Out to Get You’

After a busy year and a half of touring, appearing on the 2015 Warped Tour lineup, and with much success following their first album Wishful Thinking, Neck Deep have released their sophomore album Life’s Not Out to Get You. Fans first got a taste of Neck Deep’s new album on May 11th when the single Can’t Kick up the Roots was released and on July 20th when they released their 2nd single Gold Steps.

This album opens up dramatically with the song Citizens of Earth, a fast passed, angry, pop punk jam, with heavy aggressive vocals from front man Ben Barlow. Before the album came out, a video for Can’t Kick up the Roots was released. This is the most defining song of the album, it has everything you’re looking for in the perfect pop punk song, upbeat music, a punky breakdown and lyrics about teenage memories. The lyrics are nostalgic and a tad humorous, but in a good way, you won’t be able to get this song out of your head.

Much like Neck Deep’s last album Wishful Thinking, Life’s Not Out to Get You has a youthful, fun, rebellious vibe. There are many allusions to pop culture in the song titles, with Threat Level Midnight being named after an episode of The Office. On the song Kali Ma, a song clearly referencing a scene in an Indiana Jones movie, vocalist Jeremy McKinnon, from A Day to Remember provides guest vocals.

Life’s Not Out to Get You is an album fans can listen to all the way through without losing interest. Every song on this album is catchy and exceptionally well written, and it’s no surprise, Neck Deep has a knack for writing songs that get stuck in your head. Neck Deep may stick to a lot of pop punk cliches but overall, this album is incredibly fun to listen to. It showcases great lyrics, melodic guitar riffs and fast drums beats. Even the slower songs December and Threat Level Midnight are incredibly catchy. If you’re looking for the perfect summer album to listen to on long drives, or if you need a great positive song to put you in a good mood, Neck Deep’s Life’s Not Out to Get You is certainly worth checking out.