A while back, not all that long ago, in a barn in the rural city of Herk-De-Stad in Belgium, something clearly was going on. Instagram stories revealed several beloved characters from the pop punk universe teaming up and brewing something in a studio. If they meant to keep it a secret, they were doing a bad job of it. But what they were actually recording, we could only guess.<\/p>\n
Well the secret’s out. It’s Scrapped Plans, featuring Mikey Erg (drums), Grath Madden, Michelle Shirelle, and Fraser Murderburger (guitars), and Kieron Jordan (bass). In just two days, they crafted and recorded an old school pop punk masterpiece which they titled Buddy Buddy Belgium<\/em>. The record may very well put Herk-De-Stad on the map as the epicenter of a pop punk renaissance. Barely 15 minutes long, and with all of the members taking on vocal duties, Buddy Buddy Belgium<\/em> is a quintessential pop punk record. Expect concise and snappy songs with catchy hooks and melodies that you want to keep on playing again and again.<\/p>\n By the way, Tomas Valkiers did the recording, Jeff Burke the mixing and Luke McNeil the mastering. The abundance of talent and pop punk royalty involved in this project would be unfair if it weren’t so enjoyable. Buddy Buddy Belgium<\/em>, which copies the artwork of one of the most influential Belgium punk releases of all time, is out now on vinyl through Bloated Kat and Worst Idea Records.<\/p>\n