Review Summary: Born in a Cent create an excellent collection of 5 acoustic pop punk songs about growing up, being content with imperfections, and never giving up on radical politics and creating safe spaces where all feel welcome.
I first came across Born in a Cent at Fest 9 down in Gainesville. What came across to me was a very political band with an aggressive sound that maintained a strong sense of melody and wasn't afraid to throw a bunch of different genres of music together (punk, indie rock, folk, and even some ska). I decided to check out their set based on the Fest booklets description of them bringing fresh ideas to a somewhat apolitical music scene (or something of the like) and the similar bands listed being Bomb the Music Industry!, Max Levine Ensemble, and the Flatliners.
The band's debut full length "Who Called This Beautiful?" dances around multiple genres that in the end, leaves the record a bit uneven. There are some killer punk songs on the album ("Remember When"), while some blend an indie punk sound almost flawlessly ("One of a Kind") and others fail to come together all that cohesively ("The Good Life"). Overall I heard a very talented band with a lot of potential that released a pretty solid, but uneven debut full length.
Fast forward to June of this year: the band proclaimed to be releasing an acoustic album that had a couple "simpler" songs that they had hanging around and went on tour with Riot Folk singer Evan Greer to promote the release. Due to the bands strong political message on their full length and the choice of their tour partner I expected an in-your-face political folk punk sound that we're all pretty familiar with by now.
The first track on the EP surprised me and to my delight, proved that I was far wrong on my assumptions. "Rainy Days" starts out with a quiet acoustic guitar and lead vocals by Charlene singing about an imperfect relationship and being content with both her and her partner's imperfections. The track is basically a pop-punk song stripped down and played with acoustic instruments which is something that they nailed on this EP. It's almost as if when stripping down the instruments they stripped down to more raw emotion than they had on the previous full length.
"With or Without You" is a cool bluesy-folk song equipped with lyrics poking fun at and disappointed in a friend that lost their radical views (Don't want to feel guilty so instead you say / Your radical past was a historical phase / All the college kids went through it sometime / But what about those of us who still organize?)
"Not Old Enough" is the best track on the EP that really shows that the band can be best when they're not singing about politics. The lyrics to the song can resonate with anyone that's young, searching, and battling with conformity:
"People get older, people grow up
People have kids, people fall in love
Maybe I'm like them, maybe I'm not
Maybe someday, I'm not old enough"
The song sounds like something you might hear on a newer Defiance, Ohio record with the lyrical style of Conor Oberst. Following "Not Old Enough" is the slightly out of place, "Unheard Anthems." The song rings out as a anarchist/queer folk punk anthem and has a lot of angst and push behind it that the rest of the EP doesn't have. Despite feeling slightly out of place, on it's own, it's a standout track.
The closer to the EP, "D.I. Why?" appeared on the "Please Don't Hang Out in Front of the House" compilation but was re-recorded here with the addition of drums. This is another acoustic pop-punk song that details the band's struggles with the D.I.Y community and how it can be a safe space for people if we build together instead of dividing each other. Charlene sings "I used to feel like a stanger / people I thought I knew / Until I saw what they believed in / heard the language that they used" in the beginning of the song while Adam concludes with "Learning from our neighbors / moving beyond scenes / to create the safe spaces / that everyone needs" making a full circle of the from doubt in certain people to the creation of a safe space that is inclusive to all people.
Overall this acoustic EP is far from what I would have initially expected and shows that the band can focus on songs that are more emotional while infusing their politics in a relatable way. This EP is for people that like folk-punk or even just pop-punk in general and male/female vocals switching on and off throughout. I highly recommend the EP and am interested to see where the band takes their sound next.
