{"id":98646,"date":"2025-04-10T10:00:41","date_gmt":"2025-04-10T09:00:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/?p=98646"},"modified":"2025-04-09T22:27:51","modified_gmt":"2025-04-09T21:27:51","slug":"review-magnolia-park-vamp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/review-magnolia-park-vamp\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Magnolia Park – VAMP"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"MagnoliaMagnolia Park<\/a><\/strong> is a band that refuses to be pigeonholed. From the punchy pop-punk of\u00a0‘Baku’s Revenge’<\/em> to dabbling in metalcore on\u00a0‘Do or Die’<\/em>\u00a0 to flirtations with EDM, hip-hop, and alt- and hard rock, their output has been musically scattered. ‘VAMP’<\/em> is the Florida group’s\u00a0proper<\/em> second full-length (excluding the\u00a0‘Halloween Mixtapes’<\/em>) and sees them at their most ambitious.<\/p>\n

Centered on a “neo-gothic” concept, ‘VAMP’<\/em> involves the turmoil between Aurora X1, a half-cyborg\/half-human, and a group known as the Shadow Cult, led by her estranged father, Obsidian. With multiple locations (Nocturne Nexus, the Shrouded Forest, Nether Sky City), and groups and additional characters,\u00a0Magnolia Park<\/strong> has fleshed a detailed narrative<\/a> and world-building with ‘VAMP’<\/em>. Musically, it is the realisation of how they’ve evolved in recent years.<\/p>\n

‘Pain’<\/em> is a monstrous, stomping juggernaut of an opener that firmly sees them settle into alt-\/hard rock and metalcore territory. Tracks such as ‘Shadow Talk’<\/em> and\u00a0‘Cult’<\/em> keep up the momentum with big, heavy guitars as Joshua Roberts shows off his strong melodies and visceral screams. Furthermore, there’s a cinematic, often sinister, tone which threads the early tracks, simply adding to the conceptual approach.<\/p>\n

Although it’s maintained throughout,\u00a0Magnolia Park<\/strong>‘s tenancy for bombastic alt-rock isn’t always effectively executed. ‘Crave’<\/em> battles through in the same vein of ‘VAMP<\/em>‘s early tracks yet gets lost in the mix. However, this is a band who aren’t afraid to cross genres, and\u00a0‘VAMP’<\/em> does just that. For example, ‘Shallow’<\/em> provides one of the most effective (admittedly simple) hooks and is complemented by a slick nu-metal density.\u00a0‘The Screams’<\/em> also leans into Linkin Park-esque nu-metal, before ‘Omen’<\/em> blends crushing metalcore with EDM and machine gun drumming. It’s never jarringly executed, partly thanks to the wall of distortion provided by guitarist Tristan Torres and Freddie Criales.<\/p>\n