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Thy Catafalque
Stengade, Copenhagen, DEN - 6/4
Album Reviews
Life Lessons
Best When In Motion
Written by: MAK on 31/12/2017 18:44:04
After self-releasing two EPs and cutting their teeth on the road, Oklahoma-based Life Lessons entered the studio in June of 2017 with producer Brett Romnes (I Am The Avalanche, Free Throw, SOMOS) to work on their third EP and first with Triple Crown/You Did This. The result is “Best When In Motion”, five songs that capture the progression of a band that spent months on the road in the previous year. Life Lessons went into the studio hoping to capture the authenticity and energy of their live show and intentionally approached the record with a much rawer sound in mind than on previous work.
With Life Lessons, we get that melodic punk and pop-punk blend that is ever so reminiscent of Four Year Strong. “Control” for example produces the same kind of chirpy, catchy hooks, uplifting distorted riffs and vocals that a refreshingly not trying to mimic the high pitched “pop-punk” voice that we usually expect. Frontman Kaden Birdsong sounds closer to the raspy vocals of FYS man Dan O’Conner than New Found Glory’s Jordan Pundik or Neck Deep’s Ben Barlow. The twist is that Life Lessons have a whiney emo twang to their sound that makes them stand out against most pop-punk acts, with the back end of the EP sounding closer to a Taking Back Sunday release, especially during “Without Looking Back” and “Bury It”. There is just a similar dryness and downbeat tone to the atmosphere.
“Best When In Motion” is decent enough and different enough to grab my attention, which is more than I can say about a lot of their Life Lessons’ peers. It’s a release that is a nice blend of late 00s and 10s pop-punk end emo sounds that create an uplifting atmosphere with a downbeat tone to balance it out. Neither moods outweigh the other, it's just completely heartfelt the whole way through. These tracks are well worth checking out.
Download: Control, Bury It
For The Fans Of: Four Year Strong, Taking Back Sunday
Listen: facebook.com
Release date 08.09.2017
Triple Crown Records