Let's Take A Dive Into Pool Kids:

We just had Dikembe, and now we have another one of my favorite groups from Florida. POOL KIDS!!!!

Pool Kids blend ‘00’s pop punk vibes with synthy pop music and plenty of other vibes along the way. Their third LP “Easier Said Than Done” is all of these things, and the personality of the band shines through with each track. Lead Vocalist/Songwriter Christine Goodwyne, takes you through a cycle of emotions, from moments of intimacy to moments of confidence. This record is one of my favorites from this year and I’m so excited to do this write up!

This album starts with the title track: A song that almost feels like a confession, or a love letter with the opening lines being:

“I know you’re bad for me, but sometimes you’re the only one I want.”

This song immediately pulled me in the first time I heard it. The vocoder vocals, the swelling bass, the simple drums with Christine’s vocals wrapping them so warmly, It was the PERFECT intro song. Then before I could even settle, everything picked up and I was banging my head to the drums. The guitar stabs are straight out of a ‘00s banger. The Tom fills between verses and choruses? Unreal. Andrew Anaya absolutely shredding? Yes please. The outro is 11/10, so good.

This song is chefs kiss

The next track “Tinted Windows” is straight up Paramore vibes in the best way ever. The guitars are snappy and the drums are perfectly in the pocket. The vocals are shouty, but they’re still soft. The aggression is there, but it’s beautiful. This song is pure passion, and exactly what it sounds like to be a tight band. You don’t just get together and make a song like this during practice. The song is crafted perfectly, and sounds massive.

Moving further into the album, songs like “Bad Bruise,” “Leona Street, and “Last Word” all carry the same ‘00s energy. These songs have a childlike nostalgia, they feel like something I used to jam with my sisters at my grandmas house. I almost teared up a few times just thinking of those times and how fun life used to be. This album reminded me of that 100%. The production is so good, and seriously can’t speak enough on how good the vocals are. The guitars in “Last Word” are super fun and have lots of reverb and sound so spacey. Then that classic scratchy emo sound cuts through on the verses. It’s soooo good!

“Sorry Not Sorry” is a more spacey and poppy sounding song. It’s a nice break to settle down with, and it splits up the album in a really cool way. It doesn’t lose any of the energy the band brings in the first half, but it brings a new feel and has lots of interesting sounds. The chorus is catchy as hell, and you will definitely find your self humming it all day long after listening.

“Not Too Late” comes back full force with the pop punk/emo vibes. The vocal melody is so 2000’s and is really fun. The guitars really shine in this song, and they are so cool. The fast tapping lead in the distance sounds almost like a Midwest emo riff, but it’s so hidden it still keeps that pop punk upbeat energy. It has all the elements of a great rock song :)

“Which Is Worse” and “Dani” both have that familiar energy from the first few songs. They’re energetic, but still emotional and powerful. I love how the music helps carry the emotion through each song, and never feels out of place. Also Nico absolutely melts faces on “Which Is Worse,” it’s definitely my favorite bass line from the album.

“Perfect View” is STUNNING. This song is my favorite from the record, and if you’ve followed the blog so far, you might guess why. The song is so laid back, and the droning-open tuned guitar is just heavenly.  It’s a simple sound, but sometimes the most simple things can be the most gut wrenching. This song is about the world being beautiful no matter what, as long as you have the right person by your side. I think it’s such a wholesome idea for a song, and the lyrics are so personal and meaningful that it’s impossible not to connect with them. Lines like “Got a place we could crash down the street from my folks, and the toilet won’t flush and the bed frame is bent, and our window is facing a wall of cement, but it’s a perfect view.” Does it get anymore precious than that? I mean come on. This song is perfect in so many ways, and I will love it forever.

To end the album, we get “Exit Plan” (which is a pretty sick name for the closing track lol.)

This song feels exactly like a send off. The vibes are not as in your face, but they’re not too soft either. The space is perfectly filled once again, and the song feels like it was meant to be there. The last minute is exactly what you want the end of your album to sound like. The subtle breakdown, the blasting drums, the bass driving, the guitars flashing out, and the major buildup before things eventually drop and fade to black. Curtain closed.

This album is so dope. It has everything you wish for, and even then you’d be surprised. The emotions are displayed flawlessly, and the band is so tight on every track. The production is a masterclass, and it keeps things so intriguing and exciting throughout the entire record.

Christine writes beautiful songs, and follows them up with some of the best female rock vocals since early Hayley Williams. I promise you. Andy absolutely kills it on guitar, and makes some of the tastiest riffs. Nico shreds the bass and holds down the groove in every song. Caden has some of my favorite fills and drum beats from any band recently. It feels nostalgic, but also new and exciting. This band is so tight and creative. I absolutely cannot wait until their next record!!

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A Conversation With Christine Goodwyne:

Photo by Miranda Jayne (@themirandajayne)

EH: This album blends pop and rock in a really fresh way; What was the first song you

wrote for it? How did it help shape the vibe of the album?

CG: Easier Said Than Done was actually the first song I wrote for the album, which makes two albums in a row where the first song I wrote for the band ended up being the opening track! I don't know exactly how it shaped the vibe for the rest of the album, I really tend to just go one song at a time and just let the songs sort of lead the way.

EH: I ask this a lot, but as a musician myself I’m always curious. What song are you

most proud of creating?

CG: That's a great question, as a whole I think my answer might be the song Dani.

EH: I saw where you said that you wrote the songs separately from the band and

brought them in later; Is this something you’ve always done?

CG: Yeah, that's just kind of the flow that we've found works best for us. I like to flesh out the structure, some guitar parts I consider important, and the vocals, and then just leave holes and room for everyone else to add in their ideas. I'll bounce out a demo and send it to them, and everyone will stew on it privately until the next time we meet up in person and then we start fleshing out everyone's ideas in person.

EH: The production throughout the album is incredible. Do you have any favorite

moments that were added after recording?

CG: Ooo that's a great question. The vocoder in the intro of Easier Said Than Done was one of the last moments we figured out, and one of my favorites. Some fun sounds in the verses of Not Too Late weren't added until the very end as well.

EH: You have a really awesome singing voice; What was your musical background

like before Pool Kids?

CG: My only real background in music before this was playing guitar for a church band throughout high school, and I didn't sing in that. My first time ever really singing was some harmonies in Caden and I's short-lived band before Pool Kids in college, and when that ended and Caden and I decided to continue, I was just kinda like "well I guess I'll be the singer" haha.

EH: I have to ask about “Perfect View.” It’s quite different from the rest of the album

and I can’t get enough of that riff. How did that song come about?

CG: I had just gone on a walk listening to Julien Baker's episode on the Song Exploder podcast, and when I got home I was just super in the mood to write. I picked up a classical guitar and put it in open D tuning and started doing one of my favorite fingerpicking patterns, and Perfect View just kinda came out. I was super stoked that a love song finally came to me naturally without feeling forced.

EH: Who are some of your dream collaborators?

CG: I want to get in a room with Finneas so fucking bad. I am SO obsessed with his production style and the way he and Billie seem to operate in the studio. I literally have dreams about being in the studio with him ironing something out haha.

EH: What keeps you going? Touring and being in a band can be really hard; What do

you think helps with that?

CG: My totally brutally honest answer would be considering my alternatives. I've worked a lot of shitty jobs, and any time I think about quitting I just get flashbacks to how much my other jobs sucked and it makes me appreciate this lifestyle real quick. The money sucks sometimes and it's not glamorous the way people seem to think it is, but it's a hell of a lot better than watching a student rip a projector off the wall and throw it at a teachers head at 7am on a Tuesday for like $8 an hour haha.

EH: What’s one thing you’re looking forward to the most right now? (Can be anything)

CG: We just got a possible tour offer in our email for 2026 that I'm pretty excited about! But nothing's confirmed so can't say yet haha.

EH: If you only had one album you could listen to for the rest of your life, what would

it be?

CG: Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix by Phoenix!

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Thank you so much to Christine for doing this interview! :)

Also, thank you everyone for your patience, as the week has been rough

I'm so relieved to finally be sharing this with everyone.

See you next week - Ethan