Anarbor

Anarbor are too young to ask, "What the fuck happened to rock'n'roll?," as they do in the closing track of their debut EP, Free Your Mind. Aside from the generous offering of pop punk songs mixed with gritty '70s guitars, they borrow too many lines and riffs from their predecessors, including blatant nods to numerous Fall Out Boy tracks. "Halfway Sober" is the ironic standout on an album that is otherwise lyrically typical. Every track is either about girls or alcohol (the exception being music industry hater "Always Dirty, Never Clean"), meaning content-wise this album comes across as quite cheap. Free Your Mind succeeds in blending smooth melodies and catchy hooks with Slade Echeverria's respectable vocal range on tracks like "Let The Games Begin," suggesting they were smart to work with producer Mike Green (Paramore, Good Charlotte). It's a catchy debut, considering Anarbor were still in high school when they were signed, but it lacks balls.