Philadelphia-based band Goddamnit has recently released its second full-length album, ‘I’ll Never Be Okay, I’ll Never Be the Same,’ on Jump Start Records. Consistent with the band’s debut ‘How to Take the Burn,’ ‘I’ll Never Be Okay, I’ll Never Be the Same’ certainly transports the listener back to a simpler time in punk and post-hardcore when the songs were focused more on substance than gimmick and on good music rather than how technical and weird a band could get with it. Though Goddamnit’s sound is reminiscent of this era (‘90s and early ‘00s), they have managed to somehow incorporate some originality into the mix. And on this album the band definitely seems more confident in its sound and style.

Skilled musicians and songwriters, Goddamnit’s music is marked by the diversity of its members, who are all of them Philly scene veterans, and shows a blatant refusal to adhere to a single genre. ‘I’ll Never Be Okay, I’ll Never Be the Same’ opens with the emotive, mid-tempo “Fix Dis,” and then moves into the sonically rich “Letterbox.” After that, there are enough standouts to keep the listener hooked: “Steady Diet of Sugar,” “Blue Jeans,” “Can’t Stand the View,” and “What Was Left.”

Whether you’re into punk, indie rock, emo, alternative, or post-hardcore, Philly has a killer music scene, and Goddamnit is decidedly a credit to that scene.

‘I’ll Never Be Okay, I’ll Never Be the Same’ by Goddamnit, which was released on March 3, 2017, is available from Jump Start Records in limited edition vinyl options from black to transparent orange to randomly mixed color.