Spraynard - Funtitled

I don't look like a primary school teacher, most of the time I don't act like a primary school teacher. People think I should be a bouncer or someone who looks after the bears in the zoo however I truly love my job. Most of my mates think teaching is a soft touch. I get the usual banter that I only work from 9am-3.30pm (crap), spend my days playing with PVA glue and sugar paper (partial crap) and always end up covered in glitter and sequins (only at weekends). In reality teachers have to wear many hats, not only do we have to keep 30 little people entertained about such riveting subjects as 3D shapes and local traffic studies but we also have to be social workers, educational psychologists, clowns and most of all a trusted confidant. My school is situated in a less than solubrious part of West London which is only good if you like fried chicken shops, bookies and Greggs (for American readers Greggs is a "bakery" that serves entrails in filo pastry) still despite coming from all around the globe, having less than easy upbringings and speaking many languages the children come through the gates with a smile on their faces.

Sometimes, with such a weight of responsibilty on my shoulders, it gets me down or is it just a case of me being a white suburban male and blaming everything else when I fail?. Couple this with a bitchy environment where some colleagues are more concerned with their perceived authority or riding a wave of self promotion, it can be a really challenging job. Why do I do it? What the hell has this got to do to about Spraynard's follow up to 2010's Cut and Paste? It's the glue that holds me there (listen to O.R They [track 3] to understand the long winded intro!)

Spraynard are the sort of band you need in your life. The three piece out of West Chester, Pennsylvania (wasn't Viva La Bam set there?) produce produce a brand of life affirming pop punk that sounds like Latterman suckling at the breast of The Get Up Kids (Something To Write Home About era...)  and for me fuels a sense of positivity that can drive me through any problems the day may lay at my feet. As soon as I heard the line "Today I'm proving I am more than a collection of comic books or a high score on that screen" on the stand out Denver Broncos vs Denver Broncos I knew I was listening to something awesome. The current generation of secondary school leavers have no Ferris Bueller's Day Off to understand this reference but the whole of Funtitled sounds like a soundtrack to the last days you ever have at high school. Little Green Ghouls rallying cry of "i'll prove I am something" brought me straight back to when I left the precious cocoon of my school and realised I would have to make it in the big bad world with nothing but some grades and the hair on the back of my neck standing on end... For me, even at the age of 27, Pat, Pat and Mark have produced a lively, thought provoking album that doesn't descend into the slushy realms of teenage angst or need to resort to the cliches of cliques and alienation that purvey the genre. Play it loud, play it often, raise a fist in the air and learn all the words (backpacks are optional).

Track 5 is entitled We're Pretty Nice Guys, I'm sure they are and they can write one hell of a pop punk album.

8.5/10

Available on Asian Man Records/Runner Up Records.