Album Notes

Pink Flag is Betsy Shane, Jessica Caesar and Princess Ojiaku. The record was produced and recorded by Dustin Creider at Regular John Recording except track one (King of Scene) which was produced and recorded by Jay Murphy at Hotel Pontchartraine. The songs were mastered by Nick Peterson at Track and Field. Original artwork by Steve Oliva.

Pink Flag formed in 2007 as a feisty, all-girl pop-punk trio from Durham, N.C. What they first lacked in polish, they made up for in unrepentant fun, a kind of reckless irreverence that allowed them to make catchy, adrenaline-fueled tunes that seared through romances gone wrong without a thought to the feelings that might be hurt. The songs reveled in doing collateral damage to lost loves, almost as much as they did catching crowds in their raucous catharses. In short, Pink Flag's calling card became roughly hewn pop-punk of the first and most forceful order.

But of course, maturation is an inescapable, if scary, reality for every rock band, and the intervening four years have provided plenty for Pink Flag. After their debut, a split CD with the Homewreckers, they needed time to plot out their next move. Convinced that there was (and certainly is) more to their music than simple riff-driven outbursts, the band began to record again in late 2009, keeping at it until early 2011.

The results, to be spread across the new King of the Scene EP and a forthcoming full-length, showcase a band that has refined its rock without sacrificing the punchy attitude that defined them. The trio live together now in a house in Durham, and the closeness shows through here. The cuts are tight, ricocheting with jabs of tenacious drumming and volleys of slick, slicing riffs.

“As a band, we have matured a lot,” guitarist Betsy Shane says. “There is less snottiness and more thought that goes into everything we do. Our musicianship has improved immensely. We can understand each other better. We are a family now.”

Unlike the band's previous release, the new EP features songwriting contributions from all three players. These five songs blend energetic melodies and words with pop-rock that flirts with post-punk. Riffs and bass lines explode off of one another with force. Still, these songs never lose sight of catchy hooks and tuneful sensibilities, riding smooth, melancholy-rich lines to an end that's both poignant and catchy. It's a bridge between the lighter days of their past and the more serious approach of the upcoming LP, a record that expands into spacious arrangements and approaches post-hardcore aggression. But more important, this EP is proof that Pink Flag have only grown fiercer as they've grown up, maturing into a hard-hitting rock outfit not to be taken lightly.