Opinion: Cleveland five-piece set to visit Kent

Contact Neville at [email protected].

Heart Attack Man, a name taken from a Beastie Boys song, is a five-piece band one would expect to find playing in someone’s living room, surrounded by kids with thrift shop flannels and a decent buzz. Just more than a year old, Heart Attack Man is a group based out of Cleveland that delivers addictive hooks fused with a combination of different genres flung into their instrumentals.

The band is completed by members Airick Egan, Adam Paduch, Mike Brugh, Ty Sickels and Josh Voland.

Its pop-punk-meets-indie sound landed the band in a lineup with Citizen, a Midwest hardcore band, when it came to The Grog Shop in mid-October. 

Its instrumentals are not just background noise to fill the silence left by gaps in the vocals; they are used to make the band’s presence known.

Its songs flood with imitation of punk, rock and indie and that might be the best thing about this quintet. It is not just one thing, although it’s best described as Weezer-esque. The combination of different genres makes its sound gold and gives it a range that is truly impressive for a younger band. Its songs, which are available for instant streaming through Bandcamp and SoundCloud, are short and catchy. The only downside to this band is there isn’t more to listen to.

The band’s newest release is an EP called “Acid Rain,” although its self-titled album “Heart Attack Man” is set to come out sometime in early December. 

“Undoubtedly” is a less than two-minute song, but its beginning hook is enough to draw someone in for many repeat plays. The lyrics are simple, but meaningful, making it the perfect intro song for the EP.

“Push Me Away” sounds like the epitome of five guys hanging out in their garage, Egan singing about how he “will never understand why you push away your friends” while his band mates back him up with amazing instrumentals. It’s filled with life and when played live, it’s probably a lot louder and more powerful.

“I Don’t Wanna Let You Go” dials the listener down a couple notches, but doesn’t make them lose the feeling entirely. The lyrics are real, but the song is more calm and directed toward relationships.

“Acid Rain” is the longest track on the EP, having angsty lyrics that reveal punk influences with verses like “wish I could pretend that you don’t exist at all.” The song talks about how everything will fade away eventually, provoking emotion. It is introspective about thoughts that can swarm someone’s head when they go through pain, especially upon losing someone.

“See Right Through You” touches on being able to tell when a relationship is starting to get into the slumps and when a person can “see right through you as if I never knew you.” Egan sings that he can see it coming and feels like he “means as much to you as the bridge you burned.”

Catch Heart Attack Man Thursday, Dec. 4 at The Stone Tavern along with other bands sponsored by Black Squirrel Radio.

Listen to “Acid Rain” on the band’s SoundCloud (https://soundcloud.com/newnoisemagazine/sets/new-noise-exclusive-heart-attack-man-acid-rain-ep).