Hello Reader,
Welcome back. How have you been?
Today, we will delve into Mayday Parade, a band that merged two Tallahassee, FL-based bands, Kid Named Chicago and Defining Moment, in 2005. Mayday Parade has been playing pop-punk, emo, pop rock, and alternative rock ever since, going from underground to a group with over 1 billion streams in its 20-year history and some of the most passionate fans in music.
The bands’ lineup has been consistent: Derek Sanders on lead vocals, piano, and additional guitar (2005โpresent), Alex Garcia on lead guitar (2005โpresent), Brooks Betts on rhythm guitar (2005โpresent), formerly on lead guitar (2005โ2007), Jeremy Lenzo on bass guitar, backing vocals, and co-lead vocals (2005โpresent), and Jake Bundrick on drums, percussion (2005โpresent), backing vocals, and co-lead vocals (2007โpresent). Founding member, lead vocalist, and rhythm guitarist Jason Lancaster departed the group in 2007.
Their debut Tales Told By Dead Friends EP was self-released in 2006, followed by their first studio album A Lesson in Romantics in 2007, Anywhere but Here (2009), two releases in 2011, Voldosta EP, and their self-titled album, Mayday Parade. Two years later, the release of Monsters in the Closet (2013), followed by Black Lines (2015), Sunnyland (2018), the Out of Here EP (2020), What It Means To Fall Apart (2021), and last year the band revisited their old classics in Mayday Parade Lofi EP.
On Friday, April 18th, the band’s first new full-length album in four years, Sweet,ย is out for your listening pleasure. The album is the first in a three-part series, with the second part due in 2025 and the final in 2026.
Giving credit where it’s due. Sweetย album credits:
- Derek Sanders on lead vocals, piano, and additional guitar
- Alex Garcia on lead guitar
- Brooks Betts on rhythm guitar
- Jeremy Lenzo on bass guitar, backing vocals, and co-lead vocals
- Jake Bundrick on drums, percussion, backing vocals, and co-lead vocals
- Producers Zack Odom and Kenneth Mount
And now for some hype for your ears and eyes!
The video for the song “By The Way,” via the bands’ YouTube page:
(All credits and rights to Mayday Parade)
The album cover comes to life within the official visualizer for the song, “Who We Are”:
(All credits and rights to Mayday Parade)
The album cover comes to life again within the official visualizer for the song, “Towards You”:
(All credits and rights to Mayday Parade)
First and foremost, Sweet is an album that will bring a bit of nostalgia to those who listened to emo in the past two decades growing up, as adults, or took their kids to see emo shows in the past 20 years. That experience is a great thing about music in general, and it is present in our lives, with some overlay throughout the years, feelings that I hope you not only recognize, but also take time to cherish those memories and moments, readers.
Overall, Sweet is another solid album for Mayday Parade that fits well within their lengthy discography. They’ve built a significant body of music over two decades based on their core melodic compositions and consistently outstanding musicianship from band members Sanders, Garcia, Betts, Lenzo, and Bundrick. This album incorporates those familiar attributes while adding new lyrics, themes, and twistsโall of which mesh together to sound fabulous to your ears. It is an album that I think both long-time and new Mayday Parade fans will also enjoy. There’s a nice variance in melody, lyrics and even vocal composition that will keep you entertained, impressed, and wanting more. There is great production from the band, along with long-time producers and collaborators Zack Odom and Kenneth Mount.
The piano intro to the opening song, “By The Way,” is an excellent footprint for the album. It is soon followed by some magnificent vocals and steady drum and guitar work. The next song, “4,000 Days Plus The Ones I Don’t,” kicks into a higher gear with more frantic but fantastic drumming and guitars coupled by front-and-centerย vocals.ย
The melody is kicked into a faster gear within the song “Who’s Laughing Now,” as drums, guitar, and vocals are catapulted forward to great effect. The result is what I’d give to someone asking me to define a pop punk genre song, especially in the early 2000s. The chorus furthers that categorical placement.
“This Personified” is a brief but lovely piano interlude that transitions well into the next song, “Who We Are,” which becomes anthemic and features some nice solos from the band and some standout vocal refrains. “Natural” is a sleek mover of a melody, progressing forward in time, beautifully adding some great kick drum and rhythm on guitar, allowing for some impressive guitar solos.
The second-from-last song, “Towards You,” opens with distraught vocals delivered over guitar strumming. The layered vocals add nice depth, and the strings add even more. It’s vulnerable and gorgeous.ย “Pretty Good To Feel Something” is the album’s closer, and it’s a perfect choice to end as “By The Way” was the right choice as an opener.ย “Pretty Good To Feel Something” is a marcher of a song that has some melodic shift to slow down and allow Sanders’ vocal message some time on its own. The guitars are rocking out on this song; the piano gets moments to shine. This song will surely be a crowd favorite while the band tours. Kudos.
Sweet gets 4 out of 5 Scum Drops from me. When you hear of new Mayday Parade music, this is the caliber of music you want to hear. It meets your expectations in that regard. I think it’s a great first chapter in a three-album series, and I’m looking forward to the remaining two albums, as I believe the trio may prove to be the bands’ best work. Add this to your collection on the format of your choosing.
Sweet Track listing (song length)
- By The Way (2:52)
- 4,000 Days Plus The Ones I Don’t (3:52)
- Who’s Laughing Now (3:18)
- This Personified (00:21)
- Who We Are (2:58)
- Natural (3:42)
- Towards You (3:41)
- Pretty Good To Feel Something (3:06)
Total runtime: 24:50
Iโll always advocate that you take the time to listen to every album in its entirety. The listening process with Sweet will take less than 30 minutes from start to finish. Along the way, youโll discover your own favorite songs without the influence or bias of others. After a few listens on my own, I found the songs highlighted in green font above to be my favorite songs on this album.
Follow the band on Facebook, Instagram, check out their YouTube page, and their site for more music, merch, socials and check them out on tour during their Three Cheers for 20 Years Tour.
Thank you for reading and supporting good music.
Until next time,
Alex
Scummy Water Tower Productions co-founder, reviewer, business manager, and editor. Thank you for visiting this site, scummywatertower.com, and YouTube for Water Tower Sessions and SWT Interviews. And all of our socials.
Questions, feedback, or more? Contact me: alex@scummywatertower.com
