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| < | | | __ < | ___| proudly presents...
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Artist...... Sombulance
Album....... Lifer
Label....... Lockjaw Records
Genre....... Punk
Releasedate 2017-09-07
Encoder..... LAME
Bitrate..... 320kbps
Size........ 44.06 mb
Duration.... 17:44
WWW......... http://sombulance.bandcamp.com/
.Tracklist .................................................................
01 The Articulation Of Afterthoughts [ 3:26]
02 Lessons Lost [ 2:57]
03 Here's To Liberation [ 2:24]
04 Lifer [ 2:49]
05 Downfall [ 2:59]
06 Better Left Behind [ 3:09]
.Releasenotes ..............................................................
Portsmouth and Southsea skatepunkers Sombulance have recently released their
first EP in seven years, Lifer. It's a six-track, fast paced journey that
gives little let up and offers great promise for the bandÆs future and their
(hopefully) forthcoming follow up EP or album.
Opening up with, The Articulation of Afterthoughts, the entire EP is pretty
explosive from start to finish and doesn't give the listener much room to
breathe. The guitars, expertly delivered by Ant Harrison and Will Pearce
respectively, are urgent, bright and spiky, offering some beautifully catchy,
cascading licks and the occasional adrenaline fuelled solo, backed up by
Chris EarleÆs solid bass and Marc Morey's thundering drums and snappy, punchy
snare. The whole thing combined, with Dean Harwood's gritty, passionate vocal
delivery over the top, makes for some great driving music, or indeed, skating
music, making you feel as though you can take on the world û even if it's
against you û and win.
The repeated chorus ôwe can't go backö on Lessons Lost gives echoes of Taking
Back Sunday, perhaps coincidentally, perhaps as a type of homage, but thereÆs
certainly a lot of those mid 2000s bands that seem to be influences here on
the EP, especially on something like Here's To Liberation. ItÆs one of the
slightly slower tracks, but has shades of early Thrice material and a
slightly emo/post-hardcore vibe.
Title track, Lifer, is one of the more serious songs in terms of subject
matter, touching on deep regret and having to live with the consequences of
bad decisions, and followed by Downfall and Better Left Behind, it's not
exactly a happy album lyrically if you look beneath the surface, Downfall
even playing around with minor notes and dissonance to great effect.
There's so many influences here that it becomes impossible to pick out just
one or two, but if you're a fan of Rise Against, At The Drive-In, The Get Up
Kids, or The Menzingers, then you're maybe getting in the right zone for the
kind of music Sombulance are cooking up. That's not to say they aren't doing
their own thing with it. It's actually great to hear a band like Sombulance,
who typically have a very US influenced sound, embrace their UK roots and
sing in their own accents instead of trying to pull off some kind of corny
Billie Joe Armstrong impression. Lead vocalist Dean Harwood certainly seems
to be adept at angsty, aggro punk delivery, sounding both passionate and
effortless at the same time, the lyrics tripping off his tongue like he's
lived every painful moment û broken hearts, lost love, mental health û itÆs
all covered in one way or another here on Lifer.
After their successful show at Punk Rock Holiday in Slovenia recently, and
with this solid offering, it's great to know these guys are now safely back
in the driving seat after their break, and we can expect to hear some more
good music from them in the future.
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LET'S GET READY TO RUMBLEEEEE!