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Capsize

A Reintroduction: The Essence of All That Surrounds Me

Written by: MAK on 29/07/2016 15:09:51

As a follow up to Capsize’s well-received debut album “The Angst in My Veins", “A Reintroduction: The Essence of All That Surrounds Me” is a rather fitting name for this release as the album represents the band reinventing and reintroducing themselves. This time with a more distinctly post-hardcore sound instead of the dominantly melodic hardcore vibe that the debut had. Now incorporating clean vocals throughout, the Californians can let their melodies soar and drive levels of intensity and aggression.

The quartet unleashes a complete throwback to 2005 and the post-hardcore scene that thrived in that time, emulating genre favourites such as The Used and Underoath in the process. Almost as if it is a tribute to both bands. Opening track “XX (Sew My Eyes)” feels heavily influenced by The Used early on in their career; An onslaught of aggression followed up by an ominous yet somewhat catchy chorus. "Favourite Secret" follows a similar trend, but with a more vicious approach.

The nods to Underoath feel never-ending. The intro to “I Think It's Best We Don't Talk Anymore” mimics Aaron Gillespie’s high pitched singing at the very beginning like this is Capsize’s version of “A Fault Line, A Fault of Mine”. The “Split My Soul” main riff and vocal melodies seem like they are picked right from “They're Only Chasing Safety” - the song would slot right into that album. “Tear Me Apart” then uses drum machines on top of the standard backline. The Influence is hard to deny.

The album blends the best of both influences in a way I never thought I wanted, borrowing the sheer tenacity and the ability to create an anthem and providing monstrous verses and hooking choruses with ear-pricking vocal melodies. “One Day I Won't Be So Easy to Forget” takes this to the extreme as a real stand out track on the album – lots of intensity in the riffs and beats, topped by vocals that you can’t help but sing and scream along to.

“Safe Place” acts as a nice break from the heaviness, a soft interlude lace with a crap load of ambience and Wand’s voice gently layered on top of the calming synths and slow drum machine beats. The soothing track just makes the energetic break into “Split My Soul” stand out even more.

It’s hard to tell if this album is ten years too late, or if this can be a rebirth of a genre that started to fade in the late 00s. With the likes of Underoath making a comeback, Capsize would be perfect tour buddies with this release. “A Reintroduction...” would have been a massive hit when post-hardcore was at its peak, and any fans of that era should love this album.

Download: One Day I Won't Be So Easy to Forget, Tear Me Apart, Split My Soul
For The Fans Of: Underoath, The Used, Saosin
Listen: facebook.com

Release date 22.07.2016
Rude Record