The Apostates

Wide-Eyed & Determined

Written by: PP on 12/02/2013 18:42:29

The press release claims that The Apostates are one of the best kept secrets from London, UK, and a huge part of that reason must be their vocalist who shares so much in common with Frank Turner in places that I had to comb through their biography to make sure that is not indeed the case. Their debut album "Wide-Eyed & Determined" is an exercise in putting together throaty signer/songwriter and melodic punk, sometimes going more in one territory and sometimes doing exactly the opposite.

The resulting sound is a halfway folksy approach to playing melodic punk, where tempo is often kept restrained for a more balladic outcome. In that sense, they have much in common with Alkaline Trio, whose slower songs can be equally melodramatic and mood-building as, for instance, "So Now" on this record, though The Apostates of course do not place morbid/joyous in as stark of a contrast. Most of the record consists of smooth punk rock (think Bayside except slower and less angular) that dabbles a little more in melodic punk territory than Frank Turner has ever done, but the folksy vibes cannot be denied. They give the record a laid back feeling that's quite unusual within the punk scene, which is probably why they've earned the kind of acclaim that the marketing claims.

Not really feeling comfortable with being pigeonholed in either folk or punk, The Apostates here present a sound with much promise. The songs aren't catchy enough yet to warrant a rating in the extreme end of our rating scale, but this is a good start. If their vocalist keeps straining his voice into near-shouts in the right places, as he does throughout this record, they'll have a bright future ahead of them.

7

Download: Acrylic Friends, The Junkie In Me, Fire Blanket
For the fans of: Frank Turner, The Treehouse, Spring Offensive, Alkaline Trio
Listen: Facebook

Release date 10.12.2012
Wolves Of Suburbia

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