[4/5] Anyone who's spent time on Punknews.org could imagine Apocalypse In Increments, the Punknews Records debut from Ryan's Hope, being an amalgamation of everything that website's community enjoys (or at least doesn't dismiss upon first glance), and those assumptions aren't far off the mark. Uniting the pop-punk sincerity of the Descendents with the tasteful technical enthusiasm of shredders like A Wilhelm Scream and Rufio, the Chicago band offer up half an hour of completely solid, guilty-pleasure-free pop-punk here. Produced by Dan Precision (ex-Rise Against), the disc packs a haymaker with every chorus, and it's fast and fun from start to finish. It's also worth noting that Ryan's Hope are merely a trio, though you'd never be able to tell from the ripping guitar solos and three-part harmonies. Just don't judge 'em on their cover art: The especially "emo" blood splatter must have been a momentary lapse in judgment that, thankfully, has no effect on the music in this phenomenal sophomore outing.
(PUNKNEWS) Kevin Wade
 Official Website: http://www.punknewsrecords.com
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