Over the past few years, boy bands like One Direction have been taking over pop radio and creating fangirls right and left. Although I like a few songs made by these bands, they’re not exactly my musical preferences. Recently though, I found a new faux boy band called The Vamps, and they are amazing.

First, I feel the need to explain something: The Vamps are not a real boy band. Why? They play instruments. Although Niall Horan of the aforementioned One Direction does occasionally play guitar, most of the time, those boy bands only sing. The Vamps is comprised of actual instrument-playing members, so they do qualify as a real band. However, they do seem to be adored for their looks by their fan base and act very much like a boy band, so that’s why I prefer to think of them as a faux boy band. Now to the important things.

The Vamps are a pop rock band from the United Kingdom. Initially made up of lead vocalist/guitarist Brad Simpson and lead guitarist James McVey, the band eventually grew to accept drummer Tristan Evans and bassist Connor Ball. They originally received popularity for their covers of songs such as “Mr. Brightside” by The Killers and  “MMMBop” by Hanson. This would have given me reason alone to write about them, as they managed to put new spins on songs while still executing the performances quite well.

Despite this, their original music is even better. Their first single, entitled “Can We Dance,” is an upbeat party hit featuring Simpson’s boyish but ever so amazing voice backed by poppy guitars, drums and a horn section. Their next single, “Wild Heart,” shows a more acoustic side of the band while still incorporating their pop charm. “Last Night,” their third single, begins with fun sounding piano playing and builds to become an even better party anthem than “Can We Dance.”

To sum it up, The Vamps are pretty awesome. Their self-titled debut album is set to come out sometime this year, and I’m excited to hear what else they accomplish with it. I’m also excited to see them become more popular in the U.S., because although they have experienced considerable popularity in the U.K., they’re still relatively unknown here. What I’m most excited about, though, is the fact that I found a boy band (even though they’re not a real one) whose music I can actually say I enjoy.