You know it, you love it. Years from Now play positive melodic hardcore with seriously heavy nods from Gorilla Biscuits and Lifetime, done with a circa early `90s recording job that sounds like Walter Schreifels was at the knobs. Essentially a discography, We're Gonna Need a Bigger Boat piles on 19 songs: the band's So Much Promise 7-inch, demo CD-R (minus older versions of songs that ended up re-recorded), eight new songs and covers by Youth of Today and Descendents.

The new songs are definitely an improvement on the band's elder material. It seems like they trade in their occasional dose of A New Found Glory-like pop in exchange for an even more generous early Rev influence; there's almost like a jokey Judge/Bold vibe all over the songs, really, but it gives them an extra 'oomph' even as buoyant (ba-da-dum-tch!) and upbeat the band constantly sounds. Elsewhere, we have numbers like the bouncy "Hey McFly," which could be an out-take from CIV's Set Your Goals for all I know. In all, these songs show serious promise and a bit of unexpected progression. The fleshed out "A Conveyor Belt Full of Skulls (And a Robotic Hammer to Smash Them)" is especially noteworthy too -- a solid solo, shades of nicely emotional resonance and a stumbling, reflective quote by Ben Affleck's character in "Glory Daze" closes out the four-minute track. Best of all, it follows up with the band nailing Descendents' "Bikeage," and adding a damn fun touch to Youth of Today's "Wake Up and Live."

Otherwise on Boat, the old stuff ain't shabby. "Intro / More 2 Lyfe" and "Obviously You're Not a Golfer" are hard to avoid singing along to, ridiculously invigorating on the whole despite mid-tempo basis. The lot of the songs here are certainly underdeveloped, but a good beat and additional awesome cuts like "Richie Cunningham" keep the listener's interest...um, afloat.

We're Gonna Need a Bigger Boat is quite obviously a perfect introduction to Years from Now (and at a meager $6 cost, you really can't go wrong). Now all we need is a goddamn proper full-length already -- one I probably wouldn't be surpised to have the black and yellow star on the back of.

Big Bucks, No Whammies

STREAM
Serenity Now [MP3]
You're Living a Mediocre Life Pal [MP3]
Richie Cunningham [MP3]
A Conveyor Belt Full of Skulls (And a Robotic Hammer to Smash Them)