On Diffuser's diverse second album for Hollywood Records, we get some raucous pop-punk tunes like the opener "New High" with its inviting vocal harmonies, the light-hearted romp "Get It On," "Nothing Left to Say", and the somewhat tougher "Far and In Between," featuring sporadic distorted vocals that give it some extra bite. But also a handful of slower, more subdued, ballad-like offerings in the form of "Long Way From Home," the light acoustic coming of age song "Breakaway," and "Why." Like "Long Way From Home," "Why" also features a string section that gives it more texture, and ends in a sweeping, grand, heartrending fashion.

Now, this stuff's not groundbreaking by any means - Making The Grade is full of radio-friendly pop-punk tunes - but it's played well. The bulk of the album sees this Long Island quartet cranking out fun and catchy tunes, making it a nice summer release like Slick Shoes' Far From Nowhere. And although a majority of the songs actually deal with heartbreak, a bunch are upbeat rather than wallowing. We don't get whiny, my girlfriend left me, oh-woe-is-me vocals, which is somewhat refreshing. Rather, vocalist/main songwriter Tomas Costanza pens lyrics that can change on a dime, from expressing the feelings of a bitter man after a breakup, proclaiming acidly, "Here's to you and all your loving thoughts/ Here's to you, you're such a fucking whore/ Here's to you for bringing me down/ Here's to you, I'm glad you're gone now" on "Here's to You," to falling in love all over again with someone new on the sweet but not cloying "She's All Mine." Costanza also shows us his sense of humor on the aforementioned "Get It On," a song that is meant for his old social studies teacher.

So, if pop-punk is up your alley (think of bands like MXPX, Strung Out, No Use For A Name, et al) and you're into catchy hooks and riffs, then give Making The Grade a listen.

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