(single/ MUSIC FOR NATIONS)
Bowling For Soup are a hardy, cult-followed Texan 4-piece� and understandably so. They�re an institution � well, almost. And their music? It�s awesome.
Less pop-punk than we�re led to believe, their melodically slick music is moreover pop-rock in its prime � totally unfaultable.
Still, their attitude is wholly imbued with such enthusiasm and racing zest that you can�t deny them their punk-rooted credentials, as �Punk Rock 101� makes for the finishing line in spirited style with reference to even Bon Jovi in there for quirky measure. Bowling For Soup�s strength, though, still festers in the fact that they produce stonkingly good-fun music but without the banal immaturity of bands like Blink 182 who think telling crap jokes is more likely to win them fans than the quality of their music.
Just as the Murderdolls have so wickedly covered classic 80�s anthem �White Wedding,� BFS then set their pace for re-working another band�s song, in this case Flock of Seagulls� �I Ran� which rockets along with a fab pulse and customary rock guitar solo, before the bass-weighted �Star Song� is the ultimate, as-ever-anthemic reference-point for high school-trapped adolescents and their growing pains: �Everybody�s got their scars� You�re beautiful the way you are.�
These 3 songs are melody and harmony-buoyed to such a fine degree that Bowling For Soup even wind up as genuinely endearing, sweet and charming guys in the process.
And their dishy pop-punk-rock has never sounded so perfect. (4/5) STEVE RUDD
Release date: August 18th 2003
www.bowlingforsoup.com