{"id":2590,"date":"2017-04-06T14:05:42","date_gmt":"2017-04-06T14:05:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/review-whips-the-ride\/"},"modified":"2017-04-06T14:05:42","modified_gmt":"2017-04-06T14:05:42","slug":"review-whips-the-ride","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/review-whips-the-ride\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Whips – The Ride"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/figure>\n

Right from the off, it’s difficult to pin down Milwaukee quartet Whips<\/b>’ sound precisely. There’s icy, sinister post-punk reminiscent of Savages (Ashley Smith’s vocal approach, especially, mirrors Jehnny Beth’s). But there’s also a more light-hearted, upbeat side to Whips<\/b>’ sound that is closer to the modern indie-punk of bands on a label like Big Scary Monsters.<\/p>\n

Despite these disparate styles, it’s clear that Whips<\/b> are adept at combining the elements, and ‘The Ride’<\/i>, shows continuining refinement when compared to their previous work. Songs like the title track and ‘Pest Control’<\/i> neatly tie bouncy melodies and speedy tempos together with harsh, post-punk riffs.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The Ride by Whips<\/a><\/p>\n

‘Goldmine’<\/i> and ‘Nobody’s Fool’<\/i> bring in some slower, sludgy riffs that keeps things interesting. The incorporation of these influences with an already established sound is handled especially well on ‘Nobody’s Fool’<\/i>, with droning guitars complimenting Smith’s falsetto perfectly on the chorus.<\/p>\n

Whips<\/b>’ sludgier side is more fully developed on ‘Dominate’<\/i>, the album’s six-minute-plus centrepiece. It’s a track that stands out because of its quality, but also because it sounds unlike anything else on ‘The Ride’<\/i>. The explosive sludginess of the chorus is contrasted fantastically with its restrained, bass-heavy verses; and the refrain of “On your mark, get set, ready, let’s go”<\/i>oozes cool.<\/p>\n

Album closer, ‘Ms. Terry’<\/i> shows the other side of Whips<\/b>. It’s an extremely catchy song that ends the album on a high note, with all the constituent parts coming together perfectly, the way a good pop song should.<\/p>\n

That all said,‘The Ride’<\/i> isn’t always as good as ‘Dominate’<\/i> or ‘Ms. Terry’<\/i>. There’s a dip in quality during the second half of the record, with ‘Medium’<\/i> and ‘Come On’<\/i> both somewhat forgettable. At its best, though, ‘The Ride’<\/i> is a fascinating, enjoyable listen. Whips<\/b> manage to combine several different styles in a refined way that works, taking their sounds in many different places within the album’s 40-minute runtime. If it’s not perfect, it’s at least ambitious.<\/p>\n

3.5\/5<\/p>\n

‘The Ride’<\/i> by Whips<\/b> is released on 7th April on Skeletal Lightning<\/b>.<\/p>\n

Whips<\/b> links: Facebook<\/a>|Twitter<\/a>|Bandcamp<\/a><\/p>\n

Words by Alan Cunningham (@funeral_polis<\/a>)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Right from the off, it’s difficult to pin down Milwaukee quartet Whips’ sound precisely. There’s icy, sinister post-punk reminiscent of Savages (Ashley Smith’s vocal approach, especially, mirrors Jehnny Beth’s). But there’s also a more light-hearted, upbeat side to Whips’ sound that is closer to the modern indie-punk of bands on a label like Big Scary […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16242,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[1994,1993,1992],"class_list":["post-2590","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-album-reviews","tag-skeletal-lightning","tag-the-ride","tag-whips"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nReview: Whips - The Ride - Already Heard Staging<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Right from the off, it’s difficult to pin down Milwaukee quartet Whips’ sound precisely. 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