All Time LowWake Up, Sunshine

Seventeen years is a long time to maintain a solid presence in an ever-changing genre, but pop-punk stalwarts All Time Low have mastered the art of relevance, no moreso than with their eighth studio album, Wake Up, Sunshine.

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Expect the same All Time Low, back to basics but with an overriding sense of maturity punctuating the usual pop punk aesthetic. The untroubled romanticism is a little more adult, but it’s still as sensual and as grin-inducing as releases past. Catchy bubble-gum pop anthems are all grown up.

Tracks like Safe are a prime example of how the Baltimore outfit have solidified their sound throughout their tenure, and their life experiences into it. Take a breath, give it a go, take a chance they tell us. It’s teen angst for the 20 and 30-somethings and it’s nice to feel there’s something for that market that says it’s still cool to feel young.

Wake Up, Sunshine, an absolute and vigorous anthology, that we can truly appreciate the development of the band, both personally and musically.

Indeed, it’s the album’s opener that really bottles up sentiments of the now more mature lovelorn band. It’s one of those songs that hits you and forces you to feel everything and nothing all at once–and you’ll love the vibrancy, the sense of being alive it will induce.

All Time Low’s collaborative efforts on this album, blackbear on Monsters and The Band CAMINO on Favorite Place, really cement the sense of universal struggle and strife maintained throughout the album.

When did boys become men? Have All Time Low been as developed as they are in this release for a while? Maybe, but it’s in Wake Up, Sunshine, an absolute and vigorous anthology, that we can truly appreciate the development of the band, both personally and musically.

STANDOUT TRACKS: Wake Up, Sunshine, Clumsy, Glitter & Crimson
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