Youth Culture and the value of hating how normal we've become.

I really dig Mixtapes since they play the exact perfect blend of pop and punk that hits me so satisfyingly right between the eyes and through my brain down into my heart. Ryan Rockwell, co-singer and songwriter in the band, keeps busy with solo side projects but most of them are pretty divorced from the sound of his "day job" band. Recently he branched off and started Youth Culture, releasing their debut album I Hate How Normal I've Become as a pay-what-you-want download. The group's bio describes the genesis of the album:

This album started when Ryan Rockwell had alot of things to get off of his chest. After sinking to a low he never though he'd get to, he came out on the other side and made this album.

So what's the result? It's an album that definitely leans more to the pop side than the punk side without ever sacrificing the rock in between. Rockwell has always been a straightforward songwriter, attacking his subject matter head on, and this album is no different. But there's a new emotional level at play here, and that make listening to the album feel different than his other stuff. It's hard to convey properly, but I think it's the difference between singing what you believe versus singing what you feel. This is a "feel" album, for sure. And one of my favorite—and totally unexpected—albums so far this year.