by Jeffrey Alexander Lopez

Remo Drive has taken the emo scene by storm and given it a new hope. Made principally up of two brothers, Erik and Stephen Paulson, Remo Drive’s music has risen to the top. Releasing their album, “Greatest Hits” on the 16th of March 2017, they gave the cuffed jean wearing, flannel shirt donning, longhaired head bopping teenagers faith in the genre. Despite the fact that bands like Tiny Moving Parts, Mom Jeans and Sorority Noise have kept the genre alive, none have had the great resurgence that Remo Drive had with their debut. Although their music is powerful enough to speak for itself, music reviews by Anthony Fantano’s “The Needle Drop”, Sputnik Music and Punk News have brought Remo Drive to the forefront. Despite being influenced by modern emo outfits like Title Fight and Tiger’s Jaw, Remo Drive does not forget the founding fathers of the genre. In “Yer Killin’ Me” by Remo Drive, they end their explosive song by having a very polka-y outro which alludes to the interlude of “Basil Kite” by Cap’n Jazz, one of the most influential emo projects of all time.

Remo Drive played at The Market Hotel in Brooklyn, which may seem like it was held in a random hotel ballroom in Bushwick, but instead, it was astonishing. The venue is located on the second floor, and the stage is set to the back with windows revealing the nightly New York scene including an overhead train that passed by every 10 or so minutes. Although the venue was not extremely spacious, it allowed the music to feel more intimate. The hard-hitting drums of the opening act, Prince Daddy and the Hyena, made the floor of the venue tremble. Instead of raising the roof, Prince Daddy & the Hyena made the floor shake. They played music from their latest album, their newest single and unreleased songs. The frontman told the audience that his dad was in the crowd encouraging them to mosh, soon after a mosh pit erupted. They told the crowd that they loved Market Hotel and that it was one of the places they started out at seeing as they’re based from Albany.

After Prince Daddy, a quiet soft-spoken individual named Field Medic played his set. His soft acoustic songs resonated with the crowd as a good intermission between the heavy set of Prince Daddy and the rambunxious wall of sound Remo Drive was soon to create. Field Medic interacted with the crowd by using his signature self-deprecating humor and provided quiet but fantastic captivating songs. Field Medic left as quietly as he came and soon the anticipation of Remo Drive started to compound.

Remo Drive shuffled along the side of the crowd to get on stage but not before someone noticed and the crowd went in uproar. Remo Drive played classics from Greatest Hits, emphasized their new EP, Pop Music and showed the crowd the new music they’re working on. Crowd surfers were rampant and the mosh pit raged on throughout every song. A member of Prince Daddy and Field Medic both stage dove to join the sea of crowd surfers. They mentioned that they’re going to the studio in December so be on the lookout!

Rating 9/10