positivexposure is a digital magazine that celebrates creative expression and positivity.
It’s a common misconception that stability and reliability are the safest and most rewarding qualities that we should strive for in our lives. The promise of an inviting bed and a hot meal at the end of the day are comforting ideals, things all people deserve. But to really feel something, to endure the surprise and adrenaline of the unexpected keeps us on our toes. In this way, Larry and His Flask bring refreshing flavor with their music. Where the industry is lacking individuality, unique musical texture, and something to proudly blast on the car radio, Larry more than picks up the slack.
All That We Know could easily be described a frenzied, fast-paced, multi-faceted balancing act of genres sewn together with precise musicianship that is “finger-pickin’ good.” Moving from roots in classic country to bluegrass infused with vocals not unlike Sublime’s Bradley Nowell providing pure melodic hooks, Larry and His Flask have accomplished what many more weathered acts would probably fail at: creating a record that transitions fluidly from one song to the next without becoming sloppy and disconnected in the process.
“Land of the F(R)Ee” opens up like something Johnny and the Devil would have battled to down in Georgia, with banjos and head-spinning picking parts supporting the lyrics “I see the blood-red dust on his soul. His tired boots are as black as coal,” but by the time “Manifest Destiny” begins with trumpets blaring, we’ve come full circle back into a place of rhythm, Mardi Gras, and more banjo-picking to boot (but still managing to round out the track with rag time style piano cued up to an old Dudley Do-Right film).
Picking favourites, whether it’s picking your preferred pet, sibling or Spicegirl (how good was Sporty Spice?), it’s something we all do but deep down tend to feel a bit remorseful about. When it comes to split releases I usually sway towards one side with a wave of guilt. This split is no different, but thankfully Balance and Composure and Tigers Jaw have weighed in almost equally, so I don’t feel too bad this time around.
The pair from Pennsylvania have each showcased their take on (excuse me as I dive into dangerous genre classifying waters) modern DIY emo/indie rock, with their own personal influences. Despite their differences each band employs clear passion via quite a dark and almost eerie feeling.
The Doylestown five piece Balance and Composure lunge into the octet with a section of chilling rhythm to serve as an introduction for vocalist Jonathon Simmons on the track “Kaleidoscope”. Simmons, one of three guitarists, sings with such grit and aggression, yet his ability to transfer to soothing, smooth tones is done in such an unbroken manner. There is an incredible amount of words in the English language but none suitable enough to describe the track we know as “Burden”. The five minute foot stomping track explores phenomenal chilling lows and forceful louds, although I never realised the track was so long until now, over a year since its release.
“Doubt and thou shalt be corrected.”
That’s perhaps not the greatest philosophy to believe in when you’re a person who outwardly advocates positivity, but you’d be surprised at how often these words have crossed my mind these days. I’ve found myself in chance situations where something that is seemingly doubtful works out for the better and the discovery of SWTHRT’s Compact Disc is a prime example.
I think you can always get a sense of a band from the name and while I still don’t understand the cryptic meaning behind SWTHRT’s moniker, the first time around it gave me a bad feeling. However, once I actually took a turn to listen to the album, I was pleasantly to the point of unnervingly surprised.
SWTHRT have got that great echoing vibration to their music which is definitely reminiscent of bands like The Cure, Joy Division and to a further extent, The Velvet Underground. So right off the bat, you’re on the money if that’s your sound of preference. The hypnotic, continuous beats and ‘glitter raindrops on roses’ effect of the twanging synth guitar is not actually an uncommon thing seen in the realms of alternative music today. The Horrors strayed from their incessant skinny-jeaned screeching to do something like it on their album Primary Colours, yet I will come right out and say that SWTHRT do it better.
From what little knowledge I have of punk, I have determined that it’s a genre riddled with hits and misses. Fortunately though, I believe there have been more hits than there have misses. From the outset, I understand that it’s quite a political music - it carries a clear message, sometimes poignant, rather than just vomiting up a lot of waffle about rebellion and anarchy. However, as we all know simply from being people, having someone’s opinion wailed at you through stereo speakers can get rather tired. That’s when the trickiest formula comes to fruition; to have a band that plays not only great punk rock, but is loose on the politics too. This area is best occupied by bands like The Ramones and Iggy & the Stooges who have that magic combination of being darkly fun yet still driven by that raw power (pun intended). It’s a hard game to match up to, and it’s been attempted many times. Many people overshoot the balance completely; but then a collective from Illinois named The Heat Tape arrived to show them how it’s done.
Their debut opens with a track entitled “Spend It”, and it sounds exactly the way you’d expect it to sound - or, rather, exactly the way you’d want it to sound. The drums play out classically, an incessant adrenaline beat that shows no signs of giving up. The guitars screech and wail before folding into a steady rhythm. The vocals are scratchy and monotonous at times, and that sets up the blueprint for the entire LP. And while these might sound like negative features, they are absolutely not. They draw up the character of the band into this very glorious, very tangible domestic chaos.
Many hailed The Story So Far’s debut full length as pop-punk record of the year, ahead of genre heavyweights New Found Glory and The Wonder Years. For anyone, let alone a band who only recently graduated high school, this call would have been quite the compliment. A big call it may be, but with just one listen praises like this can rightfully and understandably be thrown around.
Under Soil and Dirt opens with “States and Mind”, a 50 second predominately instrumental piece which instantly showcases the progress since previous releases. The track flows into “Roam”, a highly addictive three minutes with an infectious chorus. “Quicksand” was our first introduction to Under Soil and Dirt which the band released prior to the album. It was a perfect indication of what was to come: pure pop-punk, nothing cheesy, no overload of gang vocals or trendy break downs. The Story So Far is everything you love about classic pop-punk with a modern spin.
The musicianship, which can be noted on “Swords and Pens” along with the outstanding “High Regard”, is clearly improved on this record. The latter features a crucial hook from guitarist Kellen Geyer and an initial drawcard to the band for me: honesty and aggression. Parker Cannon blatantly says with a sting, “F*** an apology I’m not sorry for anything/ I’ve been holding back my apathy for far too long/ You don’t deserve what you haven’t earned/ And your place in my heart has just grown so small.” I don’t know about you, but when I come across someone honest and straightforward I do my best to keep them close, so this is an attribute of the band that I certainly value. The Story So Far is honest. I’m going to keep them close and keep returning to these 11 tracks. Because of this, “High Regard” is one of my personal favourites. Entrenched in one of the most powerful choruses of the record is, “I’d like to think that you’re worth my time/ But you embody everything that I hate.” Angry enough for you?
Plenty has taken place in the Man Overboard camp as of late. In the fourteen months since debut full length Real Talk was released, the New Jersey outfit experienced line-up changes, signed a deal with major record label Rise Records, and toured with some of the most recognisable bands in the genre (New Found Glory, The Wonder Years, Fireworks) at home and abroad. Despite these undoubtedly influential developments, Man Overboard’s latest self-titled release thankfully hasn’t steered the band’s sound off track to any kind of unfamiliar territory.
Lyrically, the twelve track record is considerably more mature, but like previous material the subject matter is still based on relationships and girls. In combination with this, Man Overboard haven’t lost their ability to write memorable songs. The catchy tracks are as captivating as ever to ensure sing-a-longs become second nature. Opening track “Rare” sports a distinctive pop-punk drum beat which is a clear indication that Man Overboard hasn’t greatly changed and therefore gives peace of mind to their hoards of fans. Both “Rare” and “Something’s Weird” are hard-hitting and reminiscent of older Blink-182 and New Found Glory whose chief lyricist Steve Klein produced the record.
The duel vocal duties of Nik Bruzzese and Zac Eiesenstein still work superbly. In tracks such as “Voted Most Likely” and “Picture Perfect,” the call-and-response style used is typical of 2010’s Real Talk. Lyrics used in the first the two tracks, “I try to understand / how you could be so normal / and I could be so awkward” present themes that most teens would easily relate to (or so Tumblr tells me). Opening with gang vocals, the first two lines of “Dead End Dreams” detail the catchy, girl-focused subject that Man Overboard consistently master – in just six seconds in this case.
The idea of vaudeville is a heady concept, I believe. The term, derived from the French expression voix de ville, or ‘voice of the city’ holds a whole world of ability to its core. Obviously, it’s about expressing a message of some sort, but vaudevillians expressed their message in an overtly theatrical manner - through dance, song, vivacious costumes and make up. Through vision, motion and sound. And that’s a little bit akin to the movement of punk rock, don’t you think?
Occasionally a new band bursts onto the scene and each inch of you is ridiculously confident that this band will take part in something called world domination. Since the very beginning, even those who don’t necessarily get excited over fresh bands have been hyping on about Melbourne’s Dream On, Dreamer, and rightly so.
A Short Collection Of Short Songs, the fourth release from Cincinnati, Ohio natives Mixtapes, shows abundant advancement from the highly impressive and distinctive quartet. The 7” has definitely not only gained them a substantial portion of fans from the masses of the pop punk community, but reached the horizons of other musical cliques. I for one am yet to recommend this band to someone who hasn’t been even a little impressed, so it’s safe to conclude that Mixtapes are doing something right.
To me, Transit and their fans are very much a tight-knit, welcoming and ever growing family. With each release the family expands but the feeling that this band is your ‘best kept secret’ doesn’t diminish in the slightest. Yet again, the Boston natives have added another solid release to the list for their legions of devoted and enthusiastic fans, only this time around we’re treated to a predominately acoustic EP. However, Transit write and play with such energy and passion that it really doesn’t feel so acoustic. The catchy and easy to listen to Something Left Behind consists of tracks from each of their previous releases, plus three brand new tracks to give the family some fresh material, or to convert a brother or two.
Perfection is a hard concept to grasp. What makes something perfect? It seems that in today’s world people are striving to achieve this ultimate goal of perfection, however, in my mind, it is the entities that contain imperfections that measure the most character. James Blake’s riveting debut full length is a perfect example of what I see as true character in imperfection.
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