By objective standards, pop punk shouldn’t still be a thing in 2025—five decades after the Ramones first burst onto the scene. But thank goodness for subjective standards because there’s clearly no expiration date for catchy, dumb little punk tunes that beg to be sung along to and learned to play along to in just a few breaths.

New bands like Kryye are keeping pop punk alive, sounding both utterly familiar and totally fresh and crisp. On their sophomore album Kollektief, the South African band takes us back to the Lookout! Records era, dropping names like Groovie Ghoulies, Teen Idols, Screeching Weasel, and MTX. They sound like their heroes, too, and if my ears don’t deceive me, there are more than a few Easter eggs—direct musical nods to their influences (e.g., listen for Green Day’s Welcome To Paradise on Aksie Jackson). Kryye’s infectious energy is paired with humor, like on Groovie Ghoulie: “What did Kepi do with Scamppi and Roach? And, what did Kepi do with Wendy? Where did all those girls go? But I still wanna be a Groovie Ghoulie.” And if you needed any more reason to love ’em, Kryye start the song with the opening note of She Gets All The Girls.

On Little Love Song, Kryye pokes fun at themselves with the line, “Someone online said we needed to write a slow love song,” before delivering a self-deprecating yet genuinely effective pop punk ballad in true Masked Intruder style. I could highlight other songs, but let me just say that early single Vir My might be my new favorite track by the band.

Kollektief is a short but thrilling ride from start to finish—a record that reminds you (or at least me!) how fun pop punk can be when done right with genuine affection for the genre. Out now on LP (the band’s debut on vinyl, if I’m not mistaken) on Hey Pizza! Records. The digital version comes with covers of Bob Marley, Nirvana, Screeching Weasel and MxPx.

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