Today’s trio is slightly more on the rock side of the poprock scale with noisier guitars, louder mixes and crashing drums. British band Vant kick things off with “Parking Lot” which begins with some seductive electric guitar that just hits the bass strings before crashing in with the full chord and band. The video shows a crowd dancing like mad and the energy in this song makes that totally believable. While the song has a strong rock feel the chorus of ‘wait a minute, wait a minute …’ is pure poprock. Other strong tracks from this politically-minded band include “Do You Know Me” and “Birth Certificate.”

Next up is the UK’s Magic Gang, with an ominous sounding yet still melodic “No Fun.” There is something very “How Soon is Now” about the way the main guitar motif swoops in between verses and choruses. The band creates an interesting kind of ‘wall of sound’ intensity with the instrumentation here. A very different sound from their brand new release EP, which has a decidedly lighter tone.

Titus Andronicus round things with the wonderfully sloppy sounding rave up, “Fatal Flaw.” My first reaction to Titus Andronicus was that they sounded like an American Pogues, with their aural assault of seemingly boundless energy and enthusiasm, just two or three rehearsals short of getting everything nailed down. But seeing them live in Toronto last Fall put that notion to rest – they are one helluva band with songs that really come out in new colours live. “Fatal Flaw” is the most poprock of the recordings on 2015’s The Most Lamentable Tragedy, with the rest of the material tending toward a more punky delivery.

Find out more about Vant, The Magic Gang, and Titus Andronicus on their band webpages or Facebook accounts.