"Instrumentally sound and energetic"

by Robyn Lees, Writer & Editor

  Not quite stepping away from your well-known pop-punk bands, so much as putting them all in a blender and mixing it up; Keep It Secret's debut album 'Supernova' does just that.

With an intro as promising as this, you're surely expecting a great follow up, right? Well, their follow up is an interesting take but slightly disappointing. The disappointment is not, however, due to the guitar work or the drums; but the repetitiveness of the word "burn". It does not work as well as you might hope. Due to the sheer number of times that it is repeated during the track and the speed at which it is reiterated, it sounds mechanical and a little forced which does not make the track flow smoothly or naturally. The slight scream at the beginning of the track does work quite well especially owing to how well the deepness of it contrasts the musical backing. Although this is not the strongest of opening tracks, you cannot really fault in its instrumental premise which provides a stronger starting point than its lyrical counterpart.

'Me and You' is definitely a stronger track than the previous ('Burn'). Sounding a bit like a mash up of Blink 182, Sum 41 and New Found Glory, it most definitely has an apparent pop-punk theme; whether this became apparent from the music or the "nanana's" is a completely different matter. Cymbal clashes seem to be quite popular during this track whether they are subtly slipped in or right in your face, they work quite well which added a sort of fun and energetic feel.

Track number 3, entitled Space I, I have several problems with. I won't beat around the bush here, this track needs work. The piano opening was quite unexpected but I thought hey, it's a contradiction of styles so it should play to their advantage if they work it correctly. Needless to say, they did not. I don't think that this track works well with the rest of the album; the vocals (both male and female) were of a high standard but did not go with the piano work. The track is, luckily, only just over a minute but I'm still trying to get my head around why this track was included in the first place; only after about the 3rd or 4th play did it seem slightly plausible.

Space II, which is much stronger a track than its predecessor, has some riffs which remind me of Green Day's 'Jesus of Suburbia' (about 40 seconds in to JoS), especially the first 50 seconds or so of Space II. Personally, I thought that this track was possibly the strongest on the album; perhaps due to the fact that it reminded me of Green Day. It is definitely easy to listen to and shows prominent instrumental input.

I will say now that the vocals throughout the album do seem a little fast but it generally goes quite well with the tracks; more so with 'The Hardest Thing' as it has quite a fast-paced feel to it. We all know that sort of 80s New Wave style drumming, right? Well the drumming at the start of this track seems to merge that sort of retro drumming with modern pop-punk drumming which sounds quite effective in their style.

'Suicide' seems to finish off the album nicely; it maintains a similar level of the pop-punk theme and feel that was previously created (disregarding track 3, of course). The vocals subtly match the guitar work more so in this track, in its style in particular, which works to its advantage and provides a strong ending to the album.

The whole album, with the exception of 'Space I', is instrumentally sound and energetic. In my opinion, the tracks could all use just a touch more bass to boost their effects. The similarities between some of these tracks with those of bands like Green Day, Blink 182 and New Found Glory does make the album stronger and possibly easier to listen to.

Although this does not instantly seem like an album that everyone could get into the first time round, after the first or second play, it is easier to get into.

You can find out more about Keep It A Secret on their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/keepitsecretuk/, you can also Follow them on Twitter at www.twitter.com/KeepItSecretUK/.

Checkout their track "Me and You" below;