Single Review: Not Another Pop Punk Christmas

How To Escape Reality were formed in 2020, by songwriter Samuel Fistonich with the help of his brothers and his wife to create music which was heavily influenced from the Emo and pop punk movement. Samuel and his family grew up in China, and this song was written with Mason May, a friend of the band from those days. Lyrically it is about being along at Christmas, something I would not wish on anyone. It opens with a few gentle notes, and then we are straight in with buzzsaw riffs, with the music dying away to allow Sam to ask the question on what is he going to do with everyone so far away? The first few times I played this I didn’t notice there was something wrong with the lyrics, which I blame on being raised and growing up in the UK, but if it snows in New Zealand at Christmas then there is something very wrong indeed with our weather!

One thing which makes this song stand out is the use of dynamics, so there are times when the music drifts away which means that when the riffs come back, they hit hard. This is something which is not always understood by those within this style of music (although it also often gets missed in metal as well), in that it is the contrast which makes the softer quieter, and the louder elements more pronounced. As with any good emo pop punk single there is a great singalong chorus, and this is a full-on blast from start to finish. I would much rather hear this being played in the stores in Auckland at this time of year than the normal repetitive drivel we normally get. If this were in the clubs then I can see a lot of very sweaty people have a load of fun, and sometimes that is all we need our music to do for us. I look forward to hearing more from these guys.