State Lines are a punk power pop trio from Long Island, NY. We got this 7" EP as a digital promo, so i sadly cannot comment on the physical product. But let's look at the tunes.
5's on the Elephant starts with a jangly guitar and some cymbal heavy drumming. The voice is tortured and wailing, slightly buried in the mix. Here they remind me of early Sharks and Minnows, that sort of earnest pop-punk thing. Not bad.
Plenty of Time, however, is more Archers of Loaf. I like the guitar here, tinkling away in the background while the drummer tries really hard to destroy a cymbal.
On Cave In, the drumming is a steady hit, almost machine-like, but not quite motorik. Over this, the guitars crunch in a way that makes me think they are trying emulate Weezer. Only the voices are mixed way too high here -- they really should blend into the guitar roar, or perhaps the guitar just needs to be louder. Something is off with the balance here. Still, this is nice.
And finally the EP ends with Win Free. Here, the guitars are a clattering roar over a steady drum beat. Again, they remind me of Sharks and Minnows here. Not bad.
So, overall, State Lines are not doing anything new, but they at least do it well.
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