Parkway Drive

Deep Blue

Written by: AP on 26/08/2010 13:41:17

Parkway Drive's allure lies in their ability to both surf the popular second wave of metalcore, and also cater to the modern hardcore kid. Unfortunately such a compromise has left Parkway Drive in a rather tragic state of stagnancy, as the band has never actually progressed from their moderately interesting debut album, "Killing With A Smile". Miraculously this exercise of restraint has earned them a large and extremely steadfast fanbase across the world, not to mention status as one of the premier Australian musical exports, so naturally it begs the question, why? Either there is something that the rest of us are not hearing or seeing, or said large fanbase is astoundingly naive. It is with these sentiments that we shall now dissect Parkway Drive's third album, "Deep Blue".

The album title is well-reflected in contrived, but nonetheless cool packaging sporting the band's stylish logo, a still ocean, and an electrical storm hammering some metropolis. Why is this important? Well, if Parkway Drive wish to sell this album, they'd serve themselves well to make it look as attractive as possible on the shelves, because what rumbles within is, as expected, thirteen tracks worth of trite staccato riffing, down-tuned chugging, and infectious melodies which meet an abrupt, premature demise in almost every song when an enormous breakdown-fist connects with the flow and decimates its structure. As such "Deep Blue" suffers from exactly the same lack of dynamicity as its predecessor, the painfully average "Horizons". There is so much potential in guitarists Jeff Ling and Luke Kilpatrick that it grates one's soul to hear it go to waste in unnecessary displays of forced brutality. There are exceptions, of course, as there always are, in "Sleepwalker", "Deadweight" and "Alone", but three decent songs do not have enough leverage to drag this album out of the maelstrom of beatdowns Parkway Drive has once again sailed it into.

In fact, this time the chug-currents have sucked the Australians so deep into an underwater trench that the few glimpses of hope that were present on "Horizons" have been swallowed completely by the lightless abyss. There is simply nothing memorable about "Deep Blue" except its punishing mediocrity, and once again the question must be asked, why is this so god damn popular? Granted, if moshing and hardcore dancing gets you off and the actual music is far less important to you as long as there are plenty of opportunities for you to do these things at concerts, then "Deep Blue" is a pretty solid soundtrack to your hobby. But if you're looking for something innovative, different or impressive, steer clear of Parkway Drive and explore the bands that actually make a difference in the genre.

5

Download: Sleepwalker, Deadweight, Alone
For the fans of: As Blood Runs Black, The Ghost Inside, Mychildren Mybride, Stick To Your Guns
Listen: Myspace

Release date 28.06.2010
Epitaph

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