Real Talk - Maps & Miles (EP Review)

The great thing about new bands is that initial excitement of discovering something new and awesome. Last year around this time Grayscale came out of the woodwork and released Leaving and just blew me away at how good it was and still is. I was casually browsing the internet when I came across Real Talk. I listened to their new song "Where You're Meant To Be" and I instantly had the feeling that these guys have something a little special. I instantly added their EP Maps & Miles to my need to hear list.

Pop/punk is a genre that can at times be tough to tackle. There is a ton of it and it goes in and out of popularity. The pop/punk fan base can be really fickle in determining what is good and what is generic. Listeners are treated to some great and mediocre music with the high amount of bands. Maps & Miles falls into the great category. This band has the pop/punk formula and we've definitely heard a ton of bands work with the formula. This band does it better than most. Maps & Miles is a really great debut EP for this band. They seem like they have a bright future.

"Where You're Meant To Be" is pop/punk done correctly. It has the riffs, the lyrics, and this great poppy vibe. I really like the acoustic track "See You Upstate". It is just a great song. I really like the lyrics and the vocals are really good. It's growing to become one of my favorite tracks on the EP. "Clockwork" ends the EP on a high octane punch and has a really driving drumbeat. The EP has fantastic pacing as well. The music is catchy and sing-along-able. It's impressive.

I think if you're a fan of some of the newer buzz pop/punk bands like Knuckle Puck, Neck Deep, Real Friends, or The Story So Far you're going to like this EP a lot. This band deserves to be on the top of the list of best new up-and-coming pop/punk bands. Maps & Miles is a fun EP, a really good listening experience, and perfect music for this time of the year. This is one of the better EPs I've heard this year and can really see myself listening to it quite a bit.