Matchbook Romance

Matchbook Romance may have arrived slightly too late for the noughties emo train - with their debut Stories and Alibis coming out in 2003, just as the genre was beginning to implode – but they hold a special place in my early exploration of pop punk and post-hardcore. That debut album was bursting with heart-on-sleeve lyrics, poppy melodies and subtly aggressive riffs, and their early live shows – such as at London’s Underworld in 2004 – proved that they had more passion than ever given credited for. What tracks like ‘Your Stories, My Alibis’ and ‘Promise’ lacked in their originality more than made up for it with their accessible hooks and sheer urgency.
Much like Brand New, who also released an emo-tinged debut to critical ‘mehs’ before returning with an accomplished follow-up, Matchbook Romance showcased their dexterity with their ambitious second album, Voices. The album featured more post-rock grandeur and Muse-esque noodling, but in dropping the ‘screamo’ they unfairly lost a lot of their fanbase and ended up breaking up. It was a shame, as ‘You Can Run, But We'll Find You’, ‘Surrender’ and ‘Monsters’ were some of the best and most underrated melodic post-hardcore songs from that era, and I was never able to see them performed live.
The New York band reformed a couple of years ago for a series of reunion shows…surely another reunion tour has got to be on the cards?