Running Still, a Columbus, Ohio-based emo band, decided to mess up my list of the best EPs of the year by releasing their newest EP, Still Running, on December thirteenth, 2024. It’s their first EP, with their previous two releases being singles that are a part of the EP. Packed full of captivating riffs, tonality you’d find in a coming-of-age movie, and energy that you can’t really get anywhere else, Still Running is bound to be a DIY emo classic – and I’ll do anything I have to do to make sure that it is! This EP brings to mind a few different artists and bands that I grew up with, like Linkin Park and Neck Deep, bringing in sounds from all different parts of the emo genre, creating this blend of familiarity and novelty that you just can’t find everywhere.
My favorite track from the EP is “Pew”, the last song in the EP. It’s this incredible track that has those aforementioned aspects of familiarity while still being completely new at the same time. It’s reminiscent of the sounds of early Fall Out Boy and Linkin Park, and the lyricism is absolutely awesome. This track has so much energy and is just so much fun – it’s the kind of track that makes you want to move around, no matter where you are. You’ll find yourself nodding your head as you’re driving or tapping your feet softly as you study in the library – this track can follow you everywhere, living inside your head, almost as if it’s the fuel that feeds the fire of the machine that is your brain.
From the depths that we are privy to in “Fight It” and the energy that courses through your veins when you listen to “Everything’s Shit”, Still Running takes us on a journey, keeping our hearts safe as we journey through a landscape full of emotion and compelling lyrics, delivering us safely to the end of the EP, our hand held the entire time.
Written by Valor
