Sunnyland

RISE / BMG

Though it never quite hits the spine-tickling highs of 2015’s Mike Sapone-produced

BlackLines, the Tallahassee quintet’s sixth full offering is an impossibly charming and inventive pop-punk romp. Guitars – albeit mixed a little too cleanly for our tastes – are bursting with life, Brooks Betts and Alex Garcia both endlessly impassioned from cover to cover. The record as a whole is notedly more palatable than previous efforts – it’s certainly more pop than punk – but such hasn’t muted Mayday’s talent for conjuring some massively impactful jams. In fact, the honey-sweet melodies at play make way for some of their most undeniable anthems yet. Well titled, Sunnyland is a playful summer-ready album perfect to warm up this especially vicious winter.