This record is a hot contender for the coveted “number one” spot. However, whereas some bands fall flat whilst transitioning to a softer sound, Turnover have woven earworm melodies into each track, making “Peripheral Vision” all the more addicting. The hazy guitar tones and tranquility of Casey Getz’s vocals sound far-off, evoking a sensation of distance that induces deep thought and introspection. However, the new Turnover is more focused and put-together, resulting in a beautifully aesthetic, textural record unlike any other in today’s scene. Turnover essentially reinvented themselves as a spacy, quiet alt-emo/shoegazey outfit on “Peripheral Vision,” which is a stark contrast to their fast-paced, pop punk beginnings. It would be difficult to say that “Disobedient” ousted their previous masterpiece, “Diamond, ” but it’s definitely a close race. The final breakdown in “I Choose Nothing” is gargantuan. However, the softer melodies never overstay their welcome and they actually transition nicely in between the pummeling stompers, which there certainly isn’t any shortage of. Substantially more melodic tracks such as “The Crown” and the closing, semi-acoustic ballad “Left You Behind” are definitely curveballs towards their high-energy, hardcore roots. And the array of different styles that they experimented with on “Disobedient” successfully embodies this crossroads point in their career. Stick To Your Guns are arguably the biggest band in hardcore right now, as they’re equally capable of drawing crowds at both Warped Tour and on smaller, more traditional hardcore tours. In short, Soda Bomb are a lot of fun and they’d fall nicely in a playlist between Drug Church and Rozwell Kid. However, the Long Island four-piece also happen to write great, yelly punk songs that induce PBR slamming and other disenchanted-twenty-something debauchery. Their carefully crafted, careless demeanor has just the right amount of tongue-in-cheek value to set them apart from their noisy peers. The loud, garagey, slacker-punk that Soda Bomb churn out is refreshingly raw during the current period of bands taking themselves, at times, a little too seriously. Those are two traits that very few bands can balance as successfully as Enter Shikari. However, they still haven’t abandoned their post-hardcore roots as exemplified by the bludgeoning breakdown in “Anaesthetist” and the colossal gang vocals in “Myopia.” “The Mindsweep” is their most diverse album as well as their most cohesive. Their inexplicable juggernaut (no pun intended) of a sound was made even bigger with the addition of horns, strings, and a refined use of electronics. The English four-piece released their magnum opus “The Mindsweep” in January and yet again, as they’ve done with each subsequent release, completely redefined what anyone thought them to be capable of. Then I throw on anything from their stellar catalogue and within minutes I’m kicking myself for ever questioning their mastery. Sometimes I forget how much I love Enter Shikari. Adventures are at their best on “Supersonic Home” and I really hope they don’t decide to shelve themselves to focus solely on Code Orange. The whole album has a calming softness to it that’s complimented perfectly by the driving rhythm section and Weezer-esque riffs that break through during the choruses. Frontwoman, Reba Meyers’s voice gracefully slips in between soothingness and urgency as the songs build from gentle verses into massive choruses. However, this highlights a few records that are currently my favorites and are most certainly contenders for my “Album of the Year” list in late December.Īlthough their lineup includes three fourths of the hardcore heavyweights Code Orange, Adventures’ sound falls somewhere in between their fuzzy, shoegaze-influenced labelmates Pity Sex and the poppy, slacker-punks Chumped. Of course, there’s still another six months for albums that I don’t mention in this list to grow on me, as well as a whole slew of upcoming releases that I’m highly anticipating. And despite the dreadful weather, the past six months have bred some truly fantastic albums by bands on all corners of the collective “punk” (as I’ve stated before, I use that term very loosely) scene. Although it’s hard to believe, we’re already nearing the halfway point of the 2015 calendar year.
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