Concrete Sundays – Concrete Sundays

Concrete Sundays is the self-titled debut EP from Swedish punkrockers Concrete Sundays. The songs has previously been released digitally in demo-versions, but here they are in newly recorded versions on both physical media and in digital form, released through Bollmora Rekords.

Concrete Sundays sounds a bit like The Ramones and Teen Idols mixed with the likes of Chixdiggit!, Teenage Bottlerocket, Screeching Weasel and Descendents. It sounds a lot like the punkrock/skatepunk-bands of late 90’s/early 00’s, which makes me a bit nostalgic as this was the early days of me getting into punk. I guess there’s some British punkrock influences there as well, those pass me by as British punk wasn’t household for me back then.

The sound got a little bit of a DIY in the production, which feels a bit lo-fi, but is definitely a step up from the demo versions. Thankfully this fits the sound pretty well. Energy and melodies are what ties this together, the band really knows how to write a catchy tune. It’s also nice to hear that they can slow the tempo down a bit while retaining the energy in the sound, as in Concrete Sunday.

Some tracks are right on the edge of becoming a bit repetitive lyrically, mainly Holloway Road and Losing Battle. The sheer energy of the tracks saves them from feeling repetitive though. Holloway Road, a song about drunken nights around the British street/subway station with the same name is my favorite track of the EP, thanks to the frenetic energy. Runaway and Concrete Sunday shares the same theme of getting away from things while Losing Battle is about fighting a loosing battle with yourself. It’s nothing too deep lyrically, but fits the music well and feels old-school punkrock. And is that a millennial Sum 41 reference that is heard in the opening track?

I really enjoy the energy and the sense of melodies in all four songs, and there’s not a track that I skip while listening. Concrete Sundays sounds a lot like their, in my ears, (North) American influences, but as a part of the Swedish punk scene as of now they come in a bit like a breath of fresh air. Ironically, as the sound has been around forever, perhaps it’s the nostalgia that gets me a bit as well. Doesn’t matter which though, the EP is a nice listen, and a good break from other punk in Swedish being on the center stage right now.