Strung Out are back with a new record. Four years after the last full length the guys have a new drummer and new full length record for our listening pleasure.
These guys have come a long way from their skatepunk beginnings as they play now a metalic and technical version of skatepunk which influenced so many bands. There are 13 new songs on this record and my feelings are divided after listening to it a couple of times now. Some songs are really superb with a lot of catchy melodies and beautiful riffs in the song structures like for example Rebels and Saints, Under the Western Sky, Monuments or Hammer Down, but too bad the whole album is not like that. There are some songs in which Strung Out kinda slow down and take almost poppy approach to the songs, still staying too technical to be pop punk and too poppy to be hardcore punk. So, this album is of course a must for all the hardcore fans of the band, but it is just another record in the band´s opus, nothing to remember them by. It is better than the last one, but not as good as Exile in Oblivion for example. Still, there are more good songs than boring ones here.
What I love about this band is that they do not complicate things in their music and the song structures. They rather play old school no holds barred fast and melodic 90-ies influenced skatepunk/hardcore with fast drums, melodic vocals and backing vocal harmonies, catchy guitar riffs, anthemic choruses made for singalong and overall great vibe on their record. This 15 new songs are just made for you to feel better and smile when listening to the music which really saves and makes your day great. The songs I would recommend to you among others as the highlights of the record are: Cobalt, Visualize, Trying to find you and Wanted more. This is a great record and I am happy how this band progressed and became even better since their last record.
Sweden´s Jazzbrunch have a 7 inch e.p. out with Zegema Beach Records. It is a good one. This band combines darkened hardcore, emo, screamo and post hardcore/post metal overtones in their music. There are two songs on this seven inch e.p. both having different and special atmosphere. They both have a lot of sombre and sad melody, countered with tortured screaming vocals, atmospheric parts equal amount of catchy melody which makes you sad, aggression and noise. Idiocracy is a more straight forward songs with more aggression in the sound, while An Invitation to an Enormous Disappointment is my favorite being complex ode to darkness, hauntings of the soul and how to survive everyday onslaught of your personal demons. A great record indeed!
KRAYKULLA-WEBZINE 