No curse: Denver punks Public Opinion turn bad luck and dissatisfaction into melodic punk rock gold
‘No use in being demanding again, / No new songs and no new bands,’ announces Public Opinion singer Kevin Hart (not that one) on The Curse Of Public Opinion's title-track. If his world weariness and frazzled croon reflect the frontman's experiences grinding away in dead-end bands, then it’s at odds with the exuberant, catchy guitar rock that is Public Opinion’s calling card. That tension between feeling stuck, yet still jumping back into the fray is the love-hate relationship that powers the band’s second record.
Initially started in 2020 as a personal project for Kevin, Public Opinion has since recruited other punk lifers from Denver, Colorado’s hardcore scene, and have had some notable champions. Militarie Gun lynchpin and longtime friend Ian Shelton co-produced Public Opinion’s 2024 debut album. Likewise, Drug Church’s Patrick Kindlon has sung the band’s praises and guested on their last EP. Fans of either band will find plenty to love in the wit and nerve-jangling energy of I Pay Everyone I Still Talk To.
Kevin H and guitarist Kevin Johnson’s shared affection for noughties guitar rock is felt with taut riffs across the album that could have dropped out of The Hives’ flight case. Lucky Me and When Kevin Gets Free are a molotov cocktail of cranked amps and raucous bile, Kevin H sneering, ‘As far as I’m concerned all of you bastards died!’
Yet amid the stage-diving frenzy there are also moments of clarity. Pondering his death on Epitaph as piano drifts through static, Kevin H balances the poignant with the mundane as he asks ‘What will become of those I love?… Who’s gonna cover my shift in the morning?’ Elsewhere, he finds hope in friendship on Enhancement Talent. ‘I’ll stick around just in case,’ he offers a friend in need as the band hit a soaring emo melody, ‘And we’ll stay up so fucking late.’
Will The Curse Of Public Opinion turn around the band’s fortunes? With some of the smartest punk rock earworms you’ll hear all year, it certainly deserves to.
Verdict: 4/5
For fans of: Drug Church, Militarie Gun, Basement
The Curse Of Public Opinion is released on August 7 via SideOneDummy
