In December of 1997, Florida alt-punk band New Found Glory released its debut EP titled “It’s All About the Girls.” And it sounds exactly how one would think a punk band’s first recorded release ought to sound — rough and chaotic.
The extended play’s first track is “Shadow,” and it gives listeners a crash course as to what New Found Glory is all about. It opens with a member of the band absolutely botching the 20th Century Fox theme on a wind instrument before bragging about never having “one lesson” before vocalist Jordan Pundik begins to lament his existential malaise and personal frustrations.
“Starting at my shadow, I see the world around me / Never felt as if my existence reflects these walls so proudly / Intentions of the past defined so quickly it’s hard to change myself.”
To be sure, New Found Glory’s production improved dramatically with subsequent releases, but they were sure to maintain the whimsy and chaos.
“Shadow” would go on to become “Hit or Miss,” which would be the first track on the band’s debut album “Nothing Gold Can Stay” (1999) — released on the independent label Euology Recordings — and would later be remastered and rereleased on the band’s self-titled album “New Found Glory” (2000).
The self-titled album, according to songwriter Steve Klein, is “Just about relationships and growing up — things everybody knows about. This is a record about looking forward to new things and moving forward in your life.” A fact that is
