After months of hype and anticipation, Bridge The Gap have some serious expectations to live up to with their debut album Secret Kombinations. The 13-song LP was recorded at legendary Fort Collins, CO recording studio The Blasting Room. You may know the producer; I think he’s some drummer guy named Bill Stevenson? No big deal.
Secret Kombinations has all the hallmarks of the 90’s “Epifat” skate punk sound. The album serves up a heaping helping of everything from hard charging, Pennywise-ish sociopolitical anthems, to feel-good melodic punk songs in the vein of bands like No Use For A Name, Pulley, and the slightly more contemporary Chaser. Of course, there’s no shortage of whoas and oozin’ aahs sprinkled throughout the entire album.
The record starts strong with its title track, immediately followed by “Road Less Traveled”, delivering a solid 1-2 punch that grabs you right off the bat. “Over the Target” keeps things moving along at a brisk pace with its riffy guitar work and a driving, whoa-filled chorus. “Open Heart Purgery” and “My Creation” are much slower, but still manage to match the energy of the album’s fastest tracks. I’ve seen plenty of people comparing the latter to Pulley’s classic “Insects Destroy”, and I wholeheartedly agree with the comparison.
The back half of Secret Kombinations is where the band starts to really hit their stride; standout tracks include “Found in a Fire”, “Up”, and “Whippersnapper”. Lyrically, these are some of the album’s most introspecticive, personal songs. There’s a really earnest tone on these tracks that echoes NUFAN’s late-90’s output, somewhere between Making Friends and More Betterness.
This may be the band’s maiden voyage under their current moniker, but these guys are no greenhorns. Bridge The Gap’s lineup is comprised of members of long defunct Salt Lake City punk band Unfold, in which they released an album over 20 years ago. When paired with the warchest of knowledge Bill Stevenson brings to the table, that past experience pays dividends on Secret Kombinations. Bridge The Gap put their spin on the skate punk conventions of yesteryear, and the end result is an ultra-polished record with laser focused musical direction.
Super official review score: 4.25 out of 5 star emojicons ⭐⭐⭐⭐¼
Secret Kombinations releases March 24th on People of Punk Rock Records. Head over here to get the album on vinyl and/or CD. Digital download is available on Bandcamp.
