White Lung finds Paradise

White Lung w/Crossed Wires, Not You, The Yips Thursday, October 20, 10pm, The Seahorse Tavern, $25

Even if you haven’t heard of the Polaris Prize-shortlisted White Lung, its poppy-punk vibes will make you feel like its your favourite high school band you accidentally forgot about. With just the right amount of angst and heavy guitars (enough so that Rolling Stone landed the Vancouver-based three-piece on their “40 Greatest Punk Albums of All Time” list), it’s lightheartedly rebellious music. Like the perfect soundtrack for breaking curfew.

Now, White Lung brings its thumping drums and grimy production to the Halifax Pop Explosion.

Both vocalist Mish Barber-Way’s penchant for Bamm Bamm Rubble leopard print and the band’s DIY aesthetic (including the craft class-looking collage cover art on 2015’s Paradise) defy the band’s website claim that they “didn’t want it to sound like any old bands that already existed.”

But, the punk purist, shouted-vocal style feels like Barber-Way restyling her older sibling’s clothes: Borrowing from the past is inevitable with three chords—yet, if you wear it right, you can make it your own.