Second Best - "Vacancy" (Song Review)

Second Best's new song "Vacancy" tackles the hard task of being an autumn pop/punk song. The genre is mostly looked at as sunshine state of mind music and it can often be tough to find its footing in the fall. With "Vacancy" the band find its footing by having slow pacing in the beginning of the song and controlled soft vocals with an emphasis on the lyrics of the song. There is some nice mid-tempo emo/punk guitar work in the beginning and I think it sounds good and starts the song off nicely. It starts off soft and brooding, but then the song eventually builds into some nice energy. The lyrics are up front and the music builds and creates some really good emotional energy and resonance.

The band introduced the song on Facebook as for fans of Real Friends. While it is true that it does mix both emo & pop/punk, at times the way that Real Friends do, Second Best surpasses the for fans of mention in a lot of ways with this song. This song has the band doing a better job at mixing these influences than Real Friends has on certain songs. I also think the overall production is really good. The mixing and mastering is nice and the way it was done really helps the song achieve its vibe. I think this song accomplishes what the band set out for when creating it. It's pretty solid, a good listen, and I definitely think the band will gain a bunch of new fans. I recommend this song; I'm really enjoying it! Listen below.