Album Reviews

Following a short flirtation with Fueled By Ramen, The Swellers have found a new home with No Sleep Records and released one of their best albums to date. “The Light Under Closed Doors” has no room for filler with ten songs in thirty minutes and is proof once again that these Flint, Michigan natives are one of the most underestimated pop-punk bands around.

Opener “Should” starts off with vocalist/guitarist Nick Diener cranking out a simple melody before the rest of the band joins in for two minutes of bouncy, frolicking pop-punk goodness. From there on, The Swellers keep on dropping catchy tunes with the Weezer-esque “Call It A Night” and the punchy “Becoming Self-Aware” as absolute album highlights. If it was still the nineties, these guys would’ve fitted right in on Epitaph’s or Fat Wreck’s roster and would’ve probably gotten a lot more recognition. Let’s hope that all that changes with the new album and that the closed door gets kicked wide open so that their light can shine on everyone. Was that last line over the top? Yeah, thought so…