Late Bloomer play melodic punk that has potential, but I don’t think that this tape quite makes it. It’s okay and everything, but the harmonies drone a little too much for my tastes and the melodies don’t quite pop for me. There’s nothing inherently flawed in what Late Bloomer does, but this just doesn’t wow me. (Granted, it could just be the mix.) I guess, in the end, what always separates the great bands from the rest is that the great ones have at least one thing that makes them distinctive no matter how much they may sound like other bands out there. I couldn’t find that one thing here. Sorry, dudes.
–Eric Carlson (Self Aware, selfawarerecords.com)