My Awesome Compilation - Frontiers
Leicester’s My Awesome Compilation are one of those bands who have always been there, they seem to have been everyone’s support act and have hovered in the background now for far too long, (their first release was in 2003) I’ve always known about this band from what feels like day one, but I’ve not once been compelled to give them a listen and at a gig I would probably choose the moment they came on to go to the bar. It’s not their fault, at least I don’t think it is, they seem to have put in a considerable amount of energy and time into the band, I just don’t see them get anywhere, at all and considering that they’ve even released a split single with Fall Out Boy, I just can’t help wondering why.
So, new album "Frontiers" has just answered my question. As soon as I put this album on I knew instantly why I’d had this perception of the band. I’m afraid to say, they’re just a little dull. There’s not a hook in sight to grab on to and the vocals began to really grate on me by about track 4. Not exactly that far in to the album and I was absolutely and utterly bored. I guess this is precisely why a band that has had exposure at the highest level, with huge support slots and releases has got nowhere. It’s because they’re just not that great.
The opener to Frontiers is ‘Red Is For Danger’, a pitiful attempt at trying to sound ‘angry’, lyrically yes, sound wise and attitude no. MAC just can’t shake off their pop punkability. I can see that they’re going for a more aggressive ballsy approach with Frontiers, but they really don’t pull it off, I’m not sure they’ve got the grit in them at all, probably due to too many years of being the ‘nice’ band with the catchy choruses and sing-along melodies, although I’m not even feeling this on Frontiers.
Basically when someone says the name My Awesome Compilation to me, my response will be ‘meh’…….They’re a very middle of the road power pop rock band who have got very lucky in the past, but as all their contemporaries take off, MAC still remain in exactly the same place they started. I will still go to the bar when they play their support slots and I will make no effort in listening to their new releases.