There are times in life when you come across a band that really impacts your life in a way that you never could have imagined. A time when lyrics leave you weak in the knees and numb to the bone. A time when the fast paced melodies of that bands’ song leaves you with adrenaline rushing through your veins. Real Friends are one of those bands that I stumbled upon one day and fell in love with. While I enjoy pretty much everything they’ve put out, I’ve narrowed it down to a list of ten songs that I think you should check out from this Chicago pop-punk band.

1.) Summer

This one is for the people trying to find strength within themselves to make it through day-to-day life without somebody else (in this context, a past lover that seems to have really screwed them over).

With the lyrics “I miss you like the summer / Right now I think I need you here / But I don’t really need you / I’ll get through the winter without you”, we can see that the deeper meaning is that the winter is equivalent to dark, depressing times, and that they can make it back to happiness (the summer) without this past lover. It’s mixed with the perfect amount of desperation and aggression (“I’m a little worn out / Since you fucking tore me down) to make for an enjoyable listen.

2.) Loose Ends

With awesome guitar riffs and scratchy vocals singing about borderline self-deprecating lyrics, this song is sure to catch your attention. The instruments lie on the heavier side of the pop-punk spectrum, making this an instant Warped Tour hit. In fact, that’s where I first heard this song — on the Warped Tour 2014 compilation album. This song is what really drew me in to Real Friends and made me check out their other stuff.

3.) Late Nights In My Car

One of the things I’ve always loved about Real Friends is how relatable the lyrics felt. While many criticize Real Friends’ plain lyrics, they get straight to the point and are easy to understand. This song negatively reminisces on the past, mentioning that they were “naive and weak” back then.

The most uplifting part of the song comes towards the end, with the lyrics “If you never break / You’ll never know how to put yourself back together” which implies that there’s a reason that we break down sometimes — so that we can build ourselves up to be stronger.

4.) I’ve Given Up On You

This song showcases the softer side of Real Friends. While it features a more laid back electric guitar, the riffs are flawless next to lead singer Dan Lambton’s voice that crescendos from soft to loud. The song is aggressive in the most toned down way possible (if that makes any sense).

There aren’t any backing drums or bass, just the single guitar with Dan’s voice, which is raised. The guitar is still fast paced, but ends up being anticlimactic. Taking the lyrics into consideration, I interpret this as the lead singer showing anger but also being too worn down to be angry.

5.) Empty Picture Frames

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GMO0HC7n9k

While this wasn’t chosen to be a single off of their latest release The Home Inside My Head, it definitely sounds like it would’ve been a hit. Right off the bat, I could hear the growth and maturation just from the opening guitar riff. Dan’s vocals seem to be cleaner, a refreshing change of pace. The lyrics have also matured, become more complicated to interpret, but not impossible.

6.) Sixteen

If you were a loner throughout high school (or life, really), I feel ya. And so does Real Friends. Honestly, this song is incredibly depressing. The lyrics discuss how they’ve been distant since they were sixteen, and how they felt like they’ve been walking through life alone. This song is perfect for a rainy day.

7.) Short Song

The title doesn’t lie — this track plays just below two minutes. In this short song, an important message is delivered. It starts off as a song that seems to be dwelling on the past, but soon turns into a more hopeful message that this is just how life has to be, and that things happen for a reason. It’s oddly uplifting, leaving the listener with a sense of hope.

8.) Mess

This is another song off of their latest release that showcases their development as a band. All of the instruments and vocals are cleaner, yet the edginess is still there. The lyrics are nostalgic (“I’m still a lost boy”) which pokes at their previous releases (many of which include lyrics claiming to be a “lost boy” — see below). This song is about letting go of the past, with the past being a recurring theme throughout all of their albums and EP’s thus far.

9.) Lost Boy

The title says it all — clearly this boy is lost (mentally). The lyrics deal with a lot of depression and what it’s like to not only lose a person (in this case, a love interest) but also apart of yourself. The tone is bitter, but at the end they become accepting with the lines “But that’s the way I always want to be / Forever a lost boy with bony knees”.

10.) …And We’re Just Changing

I hate to end this list with a slightly depressing song, but… I’m doing it anyway. This is the perfect closing track on their first album Maybe This Place Is The Same, And We’re Just Changing. Like the title implies, it’s about change and figuring out where to go from here. The electric guitar is slow, but it builds up with the drums to become a song that represents who Real Friends are as a band — just a group of lost boys.

Check out Real Friends’ Spotify down below!

The post Jen’s Top Tens: My Favorite Songs by Real Friends appeared first on KRUI Radio.

Real Friends, a pop punk band from Tinley Park, Illinois, is a band that has quickly made their way up in the scene and also on the list of my favorite bands. After seeing them live at Warped Tour 2014, I became obsessed. While the pop punk scene is huge, I had heard nothing like Real Friends before. They stood out to me, especially with their first full length album Maybe This Place Is the Same and We’re Just Changing that debuted in July 2014. Now, almost two years later, Real Friends drop their sophomore LP with Fearless Records, The Home Inside My Head. Without further ado, lets jump into the review.

The album starts out very promising with the song “Stay In One Place,” a guitar-heavy and drum-driven track that sets the stage for what the album entails and who Real Friends are as a band. We then jump into the second track, “Empty Picture Frames,” which I was pleasantly surprised with. The opening guitar catches the ear of the listener, and the catchy chorus keeps them around for the entire song. I was surprised that this song wasn’t a single released prior to the album release, considering it is arguably the biggest standout track and fan favorite from this album. Not to mention, the albums title comes from the chorus: “The home inside my head has a bed for me / that no one will ever get the chance to see.”

We continue on with “Keep Lying To Me,” a song that showcases a lot of vulnerability from the band. Bassist and lyricist Kyle Fasel includes a lot of clever word play on the word “lying,” using its different definitions and synonyms. It’s a strong track that keeps the album moving forward. “Scared To Be Alone” is up next, an inspiring song that is instrumentally and lyrically pleasing. It focuses on the idea that we shouldn’t settle because we are scared to be alone.

The album takes a turn with “Mokena,” a track that reinforces the idea that they are a group of ‘Illinois Sad Boys,’ a self-titled name that can be seen on a lot of their merchandise. Instrumentally, I love this song. The electric guitar is simple and slow, which paired with lead singer Dan Lambton’s soft voice during the verses and raspy voice during the choruses makes for an enjoyable listen. Lyrically, it isn’t all there. It kind of seems like Kyle Fasel was trying too hard to be deep and introspective with this track, which can be seen in the first verse with lyrics that are all over the place. It feels a little bit too forced.

The album picks up again with “Mess,” a single that sounds like a typical Real Friends song — loaded with guitars and drums. The line “I’m still a lost boy” made me crack a smile as it would with any Real Friends fan. A first time listener would think it’s just in reference to the themes throughout this album about feeling lost and alone, but a true fan will hear the dog whistle and know that it’s a stab at many of their old songs, where they reference being a “lost boy with bony knees,” a signature line that has been repeated throughout their music career. That line was special and stood out because it tells us that they’re the same guys they’ve always been, even though now they have been launched into mainstream pop punk since their debut album release in 2014.

“Isolating Everything” was written by Dan, a refreshing change in theme and lyricism from the repeated style and lyrics that Kyle composes. With Dan’s strained and raspy voice, it sounds like something that would be on their debut album. “Well, I’m Sorry” is next, a track with emo-influences, a drum-driven beat, and lyrics that follow the theme of acceptance.

We jump right into “Basement Stairs,” a song that follows a great melodic chorus and has a lot of momentum building up throughout. This is a song that I’m sure will be played live because of its high energy vibes. Next is “Door Without A Key,” a more basic run-of-the-mill Real Friends song. It’s not a bad song, it just doesn’t have anything particularly special about it. On its own, it’s borderline forgettable.

Up next is one of my favorite tracks, “Eastwick,” a breathtakingly beautiful and heartbreaking acoustic track. Brilliant lyrics matched with Dan’s softer vocals really help to carry this song and induce sad vibes upon the listener.

Real Friends close up the album with the track “Colder Quicker,” the perfect closing song for this record. It embodies all that this album is about by bringing together all of the themes present. The momentum in this song builds up and remains throughout the entire track.

Overall, I would say this is a great album. It’s a step up from “Maybe This Place Is the Same. . .”, and you can definitely see the growth in music style and vocals. The biggest issue I see with this album is the lyrics–some of them feel as if they were thrown together, and others don’t match the melodies. Kyle writes his lyrics in more spoken-poetry style with overflowing emotion, while Dan writes melodic lyrics that sometimes lack emotion. If only the two could have collaborated better to find what would work better, I think this album would have been a 10/10. Real Friends have written some amazing yet simple lyrics in the past, so I know they have it in them to write some more. I only see them getting bigger from here, and I think that the more they experiment and collaborate with their music, the more they will continue to grow and become better.

Real Friends will be playing all summer on Vans Warped Tour (stay tuned for that festival review!).

Feel free to follow me on Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr where I upload concert pictures and you can be up-to-date on where I’ll be next.

The post Album Review: “The Home Inside My Head” by Real Friends appeared first on KRUI Radio.