Washington, D.C.'s Magazine Beach hit me up a few weeks ago about their new four-song EP, Sick Day, and I quickly discerned a good bit of promise amidst the quartet's somewhat Weezer-esque form of emo-ish, pop-tinged alt.-rock. Sick Day marks a significant step forward from their past efforts, too, most notably in that the vocals are starting to open up a bit and gain confidence—not to mention a touch more layering and harmonizing—which makes all the difference in the world. There's still a little room for improvement on that front, but these tunes are on the right track with added energy and punch all around. I'm always a sucker for straightforward, catchy songs, and that criteria is surely met!
That being said, Magazine Beach cranked out a few batches of tunes last year and definitely progressed to the point where I could see them really nailing it soon. I'll be looking forward to hearing where their next set of recordings lands...
