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The emo-tinged pop punk of Notches first made a splash with the release of 2016's High Speed Crimes before the group channeled the power pop of the likes of Teenage Fanclub and the Lemonheads on their 2019 release New Kinda Love.

The New Hampshire-based three-piece -- Zac Mayeux (bass), Ezra Cohen (vocals, guitar), and Dante Guzzardi (drums) -- first got together in 2013 and quickly started to make a name for themselves with their scraggly pop-punk that initially took inspiration from the underground D.I.Y. scene as well as the Region Rock sound. A demo appeared that same year before Notches started to build a loyal following with live shows. Their debut single, Huge EP, appeared at the beginning of 2015 and a year later they delivered their more emo-tinged, Superchunk-esque debut album High Speed Crimes. With bassist Mayeux moving away for a while, the group released just a handful of EPs -- Change My Mind and No Wonder Why -- over the next couple of years before returning in 2018 with their sophomore album, the Salinas Records issued Almost Ruined Everything. Tour dates followed with the likes of Swearin', Empath, and Washer before the band headed out on a national headline tour. The following year Notches returned to the studio to record their third album. Moving away from the scratchy punk of their early singles, 2019's New Kinda Love, channeled early-'90s power pop and indie rock. ~ Rich Wilson