TAILBLOCK – YOU HAVE CHARM AND OTHERS ARE SENSITIVE TO IT

Moper is a great way to kick off, with plenty of energy spawning from the equally rocking riffs and rhythm, and the lyrics focus on trying to cope with negativity and finding positive lights to guide you through, and they further push forward the resounding power with Charm. The committed vocals convincingly emblazon collapsing connections with other people in Social Hand Grenade, and then that dear painful longing for the past while badly missing a former close one in Our Lives Before You.

The tempo is allayed for Finish What You Started, about accepting the situation and boldly sticking by your decision to move on and let go, being confident in yourself that you indeed made the right choice to do so, and FYI, I’m digging the bass work on this one. They come roaring back for Wrong Side Of History which exhumes pity for the other party that’ve let them down, So Much From Nothing strikes gold with a superbly clamorous chorus, and Deadweight emphasises that freedom and latitude that comes with cutting loose that person who’s been a real aggravating burden on your life for far too long, special shoutout to the cool guitars on this particular track.

With this new independence, the future is considered in Potential and the acknowledgement that it might not be all sunshine and rainbows with the trauma of these experiences most likely going to stick around for good, but as the final number Smiles On All Sides dictates, people can change for the better so that bright desirable future is very much attainable, we just need to step up and embrace our strengths.

While it does suffer a bit from being sonically repetitive and predictable in areas, the excellent written content and consistently strong, often high-octane performances undoubtedly pull the Kent emo-hardcore group’s latest album through and make it a worthwhile listen, so all in all, it’s a right old blast with some thoughtful subject matters at its core.