Under the guise of Same Side, The Story So Far and Elder Brother’s Kevin Geyer opens his personal musical journal to the world. With his penchant for uncovering buried feelings of melancholy and yearning, often weaving and conjuring in isolation in a stream of consciousness style flow, Geyer’s Same Side alter-ego is the perfect repository for unflinchingly intimate minimalism with depth, vibrancy, and earnestness. While poetic themes of loss and reflection will no doubt resonate with anyone going through a bad breakup, the five songs that comprise the self-titled debut EP from Same Side soar with a dreamy melodic optimism. It’s a hat trick similarly employed by slowcore standard bearers like Red House Painters and Low, acknowledging its debt to the late Elliott Smith and American Football, but forging a unique identity. The Story So Far are at the forefront of a strikingly engaging renaissance of modern pop-punk, with a stunning turn, equally worthy of respect, that sees them folding Britpop and classic rock into their mix. Ambitious in its emotional bravery, Elder Brother saw The Story So Far’s guitarist mining sadcore territory with his friend Dan Rose, best known as vocalist of the band Daybreaker. Same Side, by contrast, belongs wholly to Geyer, offering a low-pressure opportunity to house compositions that don’t fit the other bands. The Same Side EP was recorded at The Panda Studios in Fremont, California, with longtime The Story So Far and Elder Brother producer Sam Pura, whose resumé also includes State Champs and Hundredth.
