FIVES: THE BEST WONDER YEARS SONGSThis week Lansdale, Pennsylvania’s The Wonder Years released their fourth album - ‘The Greatest Generation,’ a record that sees the pop punk quintet reach their creative peak in a number of ways. With a wealth of material in their discography, Already Heard's Sean Reid and Tom Knott took on the tricky task of picking out the five best songs from The Wonder Years. Find out what we picked and let us know if you agree or disagree?
INTERVIEW: MALLORY KNOXFollowing the release of their superb 'Signals' album, Mallory Knox have certainly become ones to watch in recent months. We caught up with the band to discuss joining Search & Destroy Records, how vital the festival season and touring are, what it feels like to be a part
of the expanding British rock scene and much more.
ALREADY HEARD RECOMMENDS: OVER THE OCEANOver The Ocean have crafted a compelling, brooding record with their latest effort ‘Be Given To The Soil.’ With intense specific precision and delicate accuracy that echoes the likes of Explosions In The Sky and Sigur Ros. Jesse Hill from the band to discusses how the
album came together, the importance of precision, being compared to post-rock pioneers and more.
VERSUS: BRING ME THE HORIZON - 'THERE IS A HELL...' VS 'SEMPITERNAL'After a top ten UK album and an outstanding UK tour with festival dates on both sides of the Atlantic to follow, Bring Me The Horizon are having a fantastic 2013 and are now featured in the latest edition of "Versus." It's ‘There is a Hell, Believe Me I’ve Seen It. There is a Heaven, Let’s Keep it a Secret’ vs the bands latest release, 'Sempiternal.'
ALREADY HEARD TRACK GUIDE: ALEXANDER - SAY HELLOWe catch up with Newcastle Indie Rock quartet Alexander to find out more about their debut album 'Say Hello' for a “Already Heard Track Guide” feature.
INTERVIEW: TITLE FIGHTHaving briefly returned to the UK for the Hit The Deck Festival before starting a European
tour, we caught up with vocalist/bassist Ned Russin to discuss the bands progression in sound, differences between UK and US festivals, their recent split with Touché Amoré,
having friends on tour and more.
Album Review: Autumn Owls - Between Buildings, Toward the Sea
I gave Autumn Owls‘ ‘Between Buildings, Toward The Sea’ a few times before I sat down to read over the accompanying press release and was surprised to read that this sweeping, intricate record was put together by a three piece. This first full-length release by the Dubliners is brilliantly produced and proves rather addictive. I’ll admit that the first listen didn’t blow me away. The songs are slow, deep, and sorrowful and yet following my second listen and the many that came after, ‘Between Buildings…’ reveals itself as something special. Emotionally, if not musically, this album is reminiscent of early Portishead; music with undeniably melancholy overtones that gives the heartstrings a welcome tug.
Opening track ‘Semaphores’ is a difficult one. It’s a great track but clocking in just shy of five minutes it goes on perhaps a little too long to open such an album – attention is grabbed and then let slip. It’s fortunate then that Autumn Owls pull the whole thing back from the brink with the wonderful riff that runs throughout second track ‘Unconvinced’ and this is where the band states their intent. ‘Unconvinced’ is followed by stand out track ‘Spider’ – a haunting piece, carried along by intelligent drumming and more enigmatic guitar work.
‘Between Buildings, Toward The Sea’ continues along the same vain for almost a half hour more and never grows dull, never releases the attention it took back following its early shake. ‘All the Lights In New York’ proves that Autumn Owlscan keep the listener’s interest over a prolonged period – at 5:56 this is the best song on the album. Singer Gary McFarlane’s vocals are at their best here, showcasing his ability to move through and around the styles already proven earlier. Moving into a powerful, moving breakdown, ‘All The Lights In New York’ shows a band at their best – original, passionate, and intelligent
Fortunately, closing track ‘Borrowed Suit’ maintains the standard and closes out the album in style. There’s plenty of distortion, twang, and sweeping vocals to convince you that the right thing would be to hit play just one more time. This is certainly not a party record but it’s a record that will see you through times between in beautiful fashion. ‘Between Buildings, Toward the Sea’ is interesting, intricate, and well worth your time.
4/5
‘Between Buildings, Toward The Sea’ by Autumn Owls is out now on Epitonic Records.
Autumn Owls links: Website|Facebook|Twitter|Bandcamp|Soundcloud
Words by Tom Knott.
