Why Everyone Left – This Is Not A Test (2018)
Love; it’s a wonderful yet wretched emotion. When it’s good, your cup will overflow with joy, but when it’s bad even the deepest hole of Calcutta won’t compare to your despair. The short spiral from break-up to being a drivelling mess is complicated and confusing; however, Why Everyone Left has captured it in This Is Not A Test.
You’re probably wondering what the hell I’m talking about. This is a music review, isn’t it?
Bear with me.
I’ll be the first to admit the interpretation of anything is subjective – just look at Freud. However, there is a connection from the beginning to the end of This Is Not A Test. Claiming the EP is less heterogeneous than their previous releases, it seems frontman Enzo Cappucci agrees. Ranging from a self-righteous break-up in ‘Pick You Up’, the drunken one-nighter in ‘Whisky & Coke’, and the ‘are we together or maybe not ’cause you’re not right for me’ confusion in ‘Stand By’; Why Everyone Left includes it all in this anecdotal EP.
The Italian pop-punk crew from Modena released their second EP on November 2nd via Penultimate Records. Reminding me of New Found Glory, the tracks could be considered an average pop-punk sound, but there’s something there that makes them different. It might be the Italian accent, or the strategic placement of the bass and drums in their songs, or the fact that the release begins with Cappucci shouting if you drown in your shit he won’t pick you up anymore.
While each of the tracks has catchy choruses, fast tempos and intelligent lyrics backed by hardcore melodies, the winner of the EP has to be ‘Whiskey & Coke‘. Influenced by the typical light-hearted and comedic themes in pop-punk, ‘Whisky & Coke’ is about a drunken night. It’s the drunken night when you are trying to ignore your broken heart and start drinking even though you’re normally the Designated Dave, but then you land up only having a kiss and wake up with an excruciating hangover and a penis drawn on your face. Obviously, something we can all relate to.
Overall, I truly enjoyed This Is Not A Test. It is more pop than punk and lighter than their previous release, Been Home Enough. If you want to deal with heartache, find something to dance to or have a song stuck in your head, then you’ve found the EP for the job. The band’s name is Why Everyone Left; if anyone left, they are not the reason why.
To engage with these talented Italians, check out their Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
