Painted on Smile
Public Opinion
September 6, 2024Denver, CO based punks Public Opinion have announced their debut album, Painted On Smile. Due out September 6th, 2024 from Convulse Records, the album combines the biting execution of hardcore, the primal swagger of garage rock, and the widescreen hooks of 2000s indie rock into potent cocktail of loud rock & roll.
Painted On Smile sounds like Public Opinion truly coming into their own. Co-produced by Militarie Gun/Regional Justice Center leader Ian Shelton along with Twitching Tongues/God's Hate member and in-demand engineer Taylor Young, Painted On Smile takes the melodicism lurking within Public Opinion's primordial punk and brings it to the forefront. Lead single "Drawn From Memory" perfectly captures this concoction, sounding like some alternate universe collaboration between Bob Mould and The Vines.
Painted On Smile is one part ultra-catchy punk record, one part exorcism. It’s an album that reckons with self-loathing and self-doubt as thoroughly as it taps into big guitars and earworm songwriting. Vocalist Kevin Hart’s exasperation is palpable throughout the album; it’s the sound of a person banging their head against the wall, trying to do the right thing, and still coming up short. “I know one of these days I’m going to die and I won’t have been able to rectify every mistake I’ve ever made between now and then,” he says. “So that means I have to choose what I can actually make an impact on. That’s easier said than done.”
RIYL: The Hives, The Vines, Spiritual Cramp, Angel Du$t, Militarie Gun