THE BOMBPOPS

Where The Bombpops had a Fear of Missing Out on their 2017 debut full-length, their highly anticipated follow up shows what happens when you’re too involved—with booze, bad situations, and behavior that’s unsustainable at best and destructive at worst.

What draws The Bombpops hasn’t changed: highly melodic punk with big guitars, vocal harmonies, and the SoCal sound that inspired Razavi, co-founder and singer-guitarist Poli van Dam, bassist Neil Wayne, and drummer Josh Lewis. But the more light-hearted skate punk of Fear of Missing Out has a serrated edge on Death in Venice Beach, as Razavi and van Dam explore darker themes—even though the songs are catchier than ever.

As much as their personal lives shaped Death in Venice Beach, the band’s hometown of Los Angeles—and its art—is perhaps their biggest muse. Razavi devoured all manner of Angeleno culture while writing the album, from books like those in James Ellroy’s L.A. quartet and John Fante’s Ask the Dust to films like True Romance, Mulholland Drive, Falling Down, and Natural Born Killers, lines from which appear in “Blood Pact.”

The album’s themes and sounds were captured with maximum nuance by a production team consisting of Yotam Ben Horin (Useless ID), Fat Mike (NOFX), and Chris Fogal (The Gamits), who also recorded Fear of Missing Out. Fat Wreck Chords will release Death in Venice Beach on March 13th.