Pessimism and PUP go hand in hand. Rather than embroidering ‘Live, Laugh, Love’ into throw pillows, the Toronto punk rockers have become the poster boys of snot-nosed nihilism – that is, until now. Five releases deep, these self-deprecating scamps have inadvertently landed on their own brand of life-affirmation; while it’s certainly no ‘Carpe Diem’, Who Will Look After The Dogs? serves as a mantra for the down-but-not-out generation, banishing suicidal despair with a reminder of the defiance and downright spite that make life worth living.
Don’t worry: PUP haven’t gone soft. While guiding pearls of wisdom are there, each one is delivered with a bite of PUP-flavoured malice. Best Revenge paints it best; as Stefan Babcock howls “The best revenge is living well!” his advice is wholesome despite its callous undertone of vengeance. This off-beat joy encapsulates the record’s call-to-arms camaraderie in this burning shitheap of a world.
