Though it might be an unpopular opinion, I've always believed that the New England area produced some of the greatest punk bands across the entire spectrum. Legends like Drop Dead from Rhode Island have been staples on the harder side of punk, while The Prozacs from Massachusetts is one of the longest running pop punk bands that exists today.

The Hideout, also from Massachusetts, is much closer in sound to The Prozacs than Drop Dead, and this second album is nothing short of essential for fans of the melodic side of punk rock.

“Midnight Society” wastes no time getting right down the core of The Hideout's sound – gritty and tuneful, where buzzing guitars and crashing percussion are met with catchy 'woah-ohs.' Somewhere between pop-punk and post-hardcore, it's an approach shared by luminaries like Hot Water Music and Samiam, and The Hideout does it just as well.

Following tracks like “Everyone Sucks” tone the pace back a bit, but they still contains pretty of charged energy before the speedy punk of “Numbskull,” which is a quick blast of playful, memorable melody. Songs like “More Yesterdays, Less Tomorrows” and “Death Dealer” show diversity with quick guitar solos and more ebullient displays of atmosphere and mood, giving the band much more depth than their peers.

The second half of the album stuns, too. “Trash Panda” starts off soft and post-punk influenced before building into a turbulent rocker, and “Bird, Ball & Chain” is an anthemic and rages with plenty of fury.

Near the end, the band gets more comfortable with the sort of driving punk popularized by Vagrant or Drive-Thru Records in the early 2000s, and then they exit on the blistering “Coppertooth,” which is textbook melodic hardcore that sounds like a younger version of Lifetime.

Rating: A

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