Thumbhole Records Return With ‘Tracks You Might Have Missed V2’.

Thumbhole Records – Your Ears, Right Now.

For our previous work on the compilation – Click Here.

Above can can find our article on the stellar UK underground Punk and Alternative label Thumbhole Records and their twenty track international compilation more than doing its best to showcase some of the best in Punk, Pop-Punk, Hardcore, Metal, Indie and general underground gems from todays music scene.

A compilation that size and strength was and indeed is nothing short of impressive but that wasn’t enough for the label and but two months later they have gone one better (give or take 10) with the thirty track Volume 2. This second effort cascades through a strong Pop-Punk contingent, Alternative Rock, Metalcore, Skate Punk and a few forays into more progressive fields as it moves through the USA, Canada, Poland, The Philippines, Switzerland as well as locales all over the United Kingdom! Shall We?

Beginning V2 you have the melodic but jagged and abrasive tech-Punk of Fair Do’s. The band are known for their genre crossing Punk-Rock sound and with ‘Hostile Company’ you are treated to Post-Hardcore precision, Melodic Hardcore rage and Skate Punk anthemics in another testament to the strength of UK Punk-Rock.

It isn’t just Fair Do’s bringing the “Punk’s Not Dead” proof however, Poland’s Cookie Break aren’t far behind with their early 2000’s Emo-esque emotive rhythmic charge. MF’s own Bogans need no introduction with their gruff-Welsh Skate Punk that takes the melody of the now and matches it with the gruff 80’s Hardcore scene.

The opening lighthearted shredding of Sombulance and their contribution is very much classic British Skate Punk. The melodies soar as the harsh socio-political distaste is worn on sleeves as well as on flags waving as they battle ignorance. A band almost local to where I grew up I hope to catch them next time I’m in the south.

Dynamite Dynamite are weary of ‘Werewolves’ and with good reason in another classic example of the strength of the UK Punk scene via thick Alternative Rock riffs played through scrappy Punk-Rock filters. FREAKOUTS also toe this rockier-Punk line with the memorable ‘Already Dead’ if the more riff-heavy mid-tempo Punk sound sets you to movement more so than reckless pace.

London’s WACO have always done things their own way and with ‘Coolangatta’ warm-Rock n’ Roll vibes, classic almost bluesy-vocals and raspy further classic Punk-Rock tones from way-back-when guide you through a standout compilation track with just a little help from some brass.

Brave Days break us into our Pop-Punk contingent while staying true to the genres Skate Punk roots alongside Descendents-esque vocal tones crossed with a New Found Glory-toned chorus and throaty screams just because in ‘Family Tree’. Pop-Punk is represented so well within V2 so fans of this resurgent genre survivor will not be disappointed whether it be classic tones, jagged EasyCore riffs or heartfelt melodies.

Felicity almost completely embody the EasyCore variant of Pop-Punk with thick cumbersome riffs, weighted percussion and Pop-Rock melodies contrasted yet bolstered by gang-vocals aplenty. Calling All Captains bring classic North American Pop-Punk to the table with the verses as far reaching and impressive as the gargantuan chorus’ with ‘Nerve’.

SnakeFight prove that The Philippines might well be the place to sample for your contemporary Pop-Punk needs as Thumbhole expand their reach even further. Anyone who has been a genre buff these past few years will unambiguously find something with this band and within ‘We Are The Broken’.

The Sydney, Australia, based Fiveash bring their own rendition of classic Pop-Punk with bass-tones lovingly in tribute to the genres hey-day while Canadians Oakrest directly follow with more jagged EasyCore tones.

But what of something different? All Tied Up bring in their British Pop-Punk rendition with which itself touches upon 90’s Punk melodies as far reaching as No Use For A Name which leads to more of the the UK’s output with the Ska-Punk of the Glasgow based The Hostiles. The band matches the genres tendency to simply “have a laugh” with the serious honest Punk Song. The Hostiles leave you wanting more which is most fortuitous because Cardiff Ska-Punks 6Foot7 have your back in ‘BBW’ (Big Bad Wolf). ‘BBW’ is perhaps one of the most entertaining tracks on the compilation, just saying.

TrueHeights hit you with intelligent and mature Alternative Rock that borrows melodies from contemporary Pop-Punk and twists them to its needs in ‘Don’t Look Down’. Wake In The Water and their eponymous track takes Post-Hardcore and Emo influenced Alternative Rock into punchy yet melodic grounds with strong guitar-lines and emotionality across the board. Thumbhole Records may clearly have a penchant for the Punk-Rock world and all it has spawned but notably both compilations have made an effort to broaden their horizons and you really cannot fault such a move.

Defences hit hard via their track ‘Two Steps Back’ that plys aggressive Crisis era Alexisonfire Post-Hardcore with melodic Emo vocals that brings back the days where Post-Hardcore had that balance between its heavier climes and desire for melody.

London Post-Hardcore/Emo/Alternative Rock band Jack The Envious boast one of the biggest tracks on the comp with strong Emo-Pop melodies, Post-Hardcore precision and crushing yet subdued mid-tempo riffs. ‘Guilty’ brings us on to the more progressive end of proceedings with The Sea, Close By hailing from Belfast with their dulcet Math-toned Alternative Rock calming things down in the final track, ‘Humphrey’s Got A Heat Lamp’.

However, as I’ve never really been one for convention, I won’t end it just yet as Thumbhole have also spread further into heavier territory. Stepping Sideways balance Hard Rock with melodic Metalcore in a track with some classic inviting guitar-work in ‘Path Of The Hero’, while another Belfast band by the name of Dream Awake follow the Metalcore path completely with a track vintage of the genre hey-day with melodies as cumbersome as the contrasting breakdowns.

Until Tomorrow unleash the humourously-titled ‘That’s No Moon’ blending early 2000’s Emo chorus’ and aggressive Metallic Hardcore and Metalcore rage through the verses. A New Hope have their place this far down in the article not because they follow this heavy vein but rather their Star Wars-related moniker. ‘Six Degrees Of Kevin Bacon’ does actually have some relevance to the heavier aspects of this compilation with strong EasyCore and even mildly Metalcore-esque riffs and break-downs permeating the track but doing so in submission to the ironic dominating Pop-Punk melodies.

But where shall we leave you? With the feel-good American Runaways and their ‘Days Passed’.

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