British punk rock band Trash Boat has been heavying up the scene for nearly a decade now. With three albums now under their belt, alongside a handful of EPs and singles, the band has firmly established itself as one of the bright lights of the future. I have to admit that I haven’t listened to this band nearly enough, especially since what I have heard I’ve enjoyed. So, without further ado, here is my review of ‘Don’t You Feel Amazing?’.

The title track of the album opens on a low, pretty heavy bass riff before the vocals and drums come in and drag it surprisingly firmly into indie territory. Even when the main riff kicks in it feels like something that would easily fit in as a heavier track at Ynot Festival. It’s not a bad thing, just a little unexpected given what I have heard from them before. Still, the backing vocals through it were nice, as was the awesome effect on them around a minute in. The chorus is still pretty light but it’s pretty damn catchy, something that would go down a storm live. It reminds me a lot of Lower Than Atlantis, actually. The low bass riff continues through a pretty fun (if simple) guitar solo, one that gets overshadowed by the vocals. They’re still catchy, but I’d have liked to have a tad more lead guitar stuff first. We then get a final, elongated chorus to finish things off. While this was completely different from what I was expecting, it was damn catchy and enjoyable, making the playlist.

One of the lead singles, ‘Silence is Golden’ is immediately the heavier nature of the band I was expecting coming into this. It heads straight into harsher vocals and heavy guitars and drums before another awesome riff comes out the end. This would have been a better opener for the album, for sure. Everything but the guitars and vocals drop out for the first half of the verse, adding some great dynamics into the track. It all builds up pretty well into a HUGE chorus, catchy and fun, even if it was very poppy and the lyrics were cringingly faux-‘hard’ and juvenile. The build-up to the breakdown was pretty great, the preaching vocals always working so well in this style of music. However, the breakdown itself was weak, basic, and not all too heavy, which was a shame. Between it and the lyrics, it kind of put me off the song a little.

The first of two tracks to feature a guest artist, ‘Bad Entertainment’ opens on a fairly entertaining (pun intended) riff. It continues through the verse, adding to the catchiness overall. It all builds into a pretty decent chorus, not quite as catchy as the previous songs’ but still enjoyable. It’s the best part of this otherwise pop song, anyway! Milkie Way (nope, I’m not kidding) comes in for the bridge after the second chorus, feeling like a cheap version of Poppy. I’m sure it was fun for them to work together, but she adds next to nothing to this track that Tobi Duncan couldn’t have done himself. There isn’t much more to this song apart from it getting a little heavier for the final chorus, but it doesn’t last long until it ends. The definition of ‘meh’.

Aside from the catchy opening vocals, there isn’t much I can say about ‘Love Without Needing’ that I didn’t already say about the previous song. It’s a pop song with some slightly heavier, distorted guitars behind the vocals. I mean heck, the vocal melody is eerily reminiscent of Ed Sheeran’s ‘Shape of You’ don’t you think? None of those factors make it a rock song, never mind a punk song. There is nothing punk about this, and that makes me sad.

Lead single ‘He’s So Good’ almost fell under the same criticism of the previous song, until the chorus came into it. It’s still very pop-leaning, but at least the instrumentation is heavier behind it and we get a fairly okay indie riff afterwards. Some of the lyrics feel at least a little heartfelt, but after hearing a couple of interesting lines and Googling the rest, they’re really quite terrible. Another pretty bad song.

‘Vertigo’ is at least another fully rock song, the first one in a good four tracks at this point, but I was that put off by the last few songs that this didn’t build up much goodwill for me. And I’m not even saying pop or pop-rock is bad, it’s just that I’m pretty selective with the genre as a whole, and when I’m expecting an actual rock/punk album a bunch of pop would put me off. So, in summary, ‘Vertigo’ is one of the better songs on the album by proxy.

The second song to feature an artist, this time Kamiyada+ (I don’t know them either) is next. It’s a little heavy again, at least the chorus is, but it’s repetitive as hell and more juvenile, unenjoyable lyrics. I guess the guest is a rapper, as he raps here. It’s surprising the best part of the song, and it’s made me wish I was listening to more of his stuff than this album. Again, this album is fine for what it is, and if anyone likes it then awesome. It’s simply a little too basic and pop-leaning for my taste in rock.

‘Idios’ all but fades into the background aside for a pretty decent breakdown hidden in the middle. It’s more that could be said about ‘Cannibal’ and ‘All I Can Never Be’ though, both of which felt more like something from Kings of Leon or Highly Suspect than a British punk rock band. They were pretty bland, even the choruses not really standing out as others on the album have been better. They felt a tad like filler but were okay for what they were, I guess.

The final single, ‘Synthetic Sympathy’, opens like a Maroon 5 song. And not like their good early stuff either, I’m talking like a modern Maroon 5 song. If it wasn’t for the odd harsher vocal and distorted guitar it may as well have been a Maroon 5 song, too. It’s catchy as heck, don’t get me wrong, but there is VERY little to this song aside from the vocal melody. Even the lead guitar part is just the same thing over and over. It’s a very safe, radio-friendly song. I wouldn’t be opposed to listening to it again, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to find it.

Somehow the final song on the album, ‘Maladaptive Daydreaming’, is the most pop-leaning song on the entire album. It’s just vocals and a VERY basic drumbeat, with the odd guitar chords coming in for the choruses. It’s incredibly formulaic, and a direction I can see a lot of modern rock bands going if this sound is successful here, unfortunately. Again, it isn’t bad, it just bores me. A dull end to an album.

Overall: I wasn’t all too impressed by this. I don’t want to sound like a broken record but it was a pop album, not a rock or punk one. It was fine for what it was, but what it was doesn’t appeal to me. I clearly like this band in small doses, just a few songs here and there, as the albums get boring for me. Oh well, none of it was actually bad!

The Score: 4/10

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Chevelle is a band of many styles, be it alternative rock and metal, post-hardcore, post-grunge, and even some nu-metal thrown in there too. The band’s closest comparison has been Tool, and they are clearly a pretty heavy inspiration on the band, yet their music takes those ideas and heavies them up a little. All sounds good so far, and like something I should damn well enjoy. However, I have to admit that given how much this band should appeal to me, I haven’t listened to a lot of them, merely not having the time to. This all changes today, though, so let’s get on with listening to their latest album, NIRATIAS. I’m rather excited!

‘Verruckt’ immediately starts on a great riff, backed up by an awesome drum roll, and the Tool influences are present immediately. Said riff keeps building until it evolves into a newer variation of it… and then does it again. It was at this point that I realised this was to be an instrumental track, a ballsy move to open an album on but one that more than pays off. Every riff here is insane, and I especially love both the guitar and bassy tones; the odd little bits of wah here and there sound incredible and the lead channel for the solos is great. It reminds me a lot of a combination between Mastadon and Metallica’s ‘Suicide and Redemption’. Opening on a showcase of the band’s instrumental talents was a great choice as this was 3:30 minutes of solid sludgy awesomeness. A great start.

In contrast, ‘So Long, Mother Earth’ opens straight into vocals. They’re pretty high and sound awesome over the quick guitar riff. The drums and bass soon come in over the back, twice as slow as the guitar which is a nice touch. It soon heads into what I think is the pre and then the chorus and the guitar occasionally follows the vocal line, again sounding great. The chorus itself has a great high vocal line that is still pretty catchy, even if it is lost in the mix ever so slightly. The band very much reminds me of what I wish Deftones were; they have that same level of heaviness and instrumental prowess, but the songs are ACTUALLY GOOD AND CATCHY. Actually, the more I hear that chorus, the more I fall in love with it. It’s fantastic. It drops down a little into a bridge out of the second chorus, the guitars sounding very reminiscent of Adam Jones’ style. The vocals come back in to lead quickly back into the chorus again, this one ending with an incredible scream from Pete Loeffler before it enters into a short, heavy outro. I loved this, it was everything I could have wanted out of a band like this; huge sounds, heavy guitars, a catchy chorus, and some of the best mixing around. Playlisted.

‘Mars Simula’ opens on another huge, heavy guitar riff, bridging the gap between the intro and verse with some awesome strumming. The verse is again very ‘heavier Tool’, the guitars and bass lower and palm-muted behind the higher, quickly delivered vocals. However, this time it soon explodes into a HUGE, open chorus, the riff giving off more early 2000s industrial metal vibes to me, think Static X or Dope. Having very few vocals during the chorus was a great choice too, the insane riff does enough talking for itself. A short bridge builds up more, adding higher pitches and speeds before exploding, everything dropping out momentarily before the awesome riffs come back in. The drums and bass sound amazing here behind the lead guitar, and I really can’t emphasize enough just how good the mixing on this album is. We get a final, double chorus afterwards to finish stuff off, and this is yet another incredible song. Why haven’t I listened to these guys sooner?

After a short interlude/instrumental track, ‘Sleep The Deep’, we reach the first and lead single on the album, ‘Self Destructor’. It again opens on vocals, this time Pete going at it alone as he sings over an awesome little guitar riff. It soon drops nicely though, the drums coming in and filling out the track perfectly. I had to stop writing after the chorus during the first time I listened to this track, stopping to appreciate this for what it is; a fucking incredible song. It’s pretty basic compared to the previous few songs in terms of instrumentation, the first half of it feeling more like a radio-friendly single. However, the vocals definitely get a little harsher after the second chorus during ALL OF THE BRIDGES AND STUFF, and the fact that it is nearly six minutes in length kind of un-qualifies it for the radio these days. But holy cow, this song blew my mind. From the opening notes from Pete to the beautifully contrasting piano outro, this was incredible from start to finish. It is easily playlisted and is my new favourite song on the album by quite a stretch. This doesn’t even feel like a song made for musicians either, the type I usually gush over, this is just a damn good song. Check this out, please.

‘Piistol Star (Gravity Heals)’ feels a little slower and calmer than the previous songs so far, but that by no means insinuates it’s bad. The riff is slow and sludgy, and when it gets some wah added to it building into the chorus it sounds somehow even better. The chorus is another very catchy one and the verse is a similar sort of deal to the previous song’s ones. This is another incredible song, but after the sheer amount of gushing about the last few songs, I’m gonna say that this is ever so slightly worse (we’re talking like 1% worse). And if I’m honest, it’s mainly because I cannot possibly put 4 songs in a row on the playlist, it feels too much like favouritism. Still, this is damn good too.

‘VVurmhole’ is another very short interlude before we head into another single, ‘Peach’. They do that thing I love where they blend the end of the one song into the start of the next too, just an added little bonus that makes albums better than constant singles, and given the concepty/spacey themes they are going for, it works perfectly. ‘Peaches’ fades in with an awesome guitar riff, soon adding a drumroll over the top before the riff opens out, the drums being slow and pretty basic but they make it massively heavily. The drums drop back out for the verse, the guitar being palm-muted and the vocals little more than a distorted whisper, adding some great dynamics to the song. The drums slowly get built back in when the vocals get a little higher before a MASSIVE, distorted guitar riff explodes in to break up the sections. This one is reminding me more of A Perfect Circle than Tool, not that that is in any way an issue. The heavy, catchy chorus again is incredible, a simple vocal line over a fairly simple guitar riff but it all works so damn well together, being heavy and melodic and emotional all at once. The little guitar solo in the middle was also great, and lead to an awesome little verse with some incredible vocal harmonies. This is another song I could gush over forever it feels so I’m just going to cut this short and say to check this one out, too.

While ‘Test Test… Enough’ does have vocals in it, it very much still feels like an interlude, just being Pete singing over his guitar for a couple of minutes. It is beautiful though, and the little runs he goes on in the middle when he’s not singing sound insanely good. It leads perfectly into ‘Endlessly’ too, said song opening quietly with a low bass and some simple guitar notes and high vocals over the top. It stays slow too, the drums coming in light and quietly over the top. It’s such a perfect showcase of Pete’s vocals; they sound beautiful and haunting and so much like Maynard James Keenan’s in the best possible way. It keeps building up and leaving notes hanging, making me constantly be expecting a drop. However, the fact that it never actually comes makes the song even better; it is a true emotional ballad. Between the powerful lyrics, double-layered vocals for the final chorus, and even the subtle edition of the bells on each big drum hit, all of this was excellent. Wow.

We finally reach the final single, ‘Remember When’. It opens on a now typically great guitar riff before stripping back down a little into the verse and exploding into another huge, heavy chorus. It’s a little formulaic of this album at this point, but it is still done so well and at such a high quality, especially for just two band members, that it is hard to complain about the similar structure at all. I have also realised that at times they also sound like heavier Alien Ant Farm; another fantastic, criminally underrated band. This was damn good but arguably the weakest of the singles.

It again fades straight into the next song, ‘Ghost and Razor’, and has maybe the best riff on the whole album open it up. Pete’s distant vocals sound great over the start of it too, and when the drums come in too it somehow ends up sounding even better! It’s a heavy, slow, sludgy song in all of the best ways. I’m honestly running out of ways to praise and gush over this band, but every single riff in this song is incredible and fits perfectly with Pete’s vocals over the top of them. It’s another one that easily made the playlist. I do have to give special credit to the dropout to just bass in the middle, building up more and more until Pete does his best Maynard scream over the top of a sick solo guitar riff. It gave me such good Know Your Enemy vibes, I loved it.

Finally, we reach the final track ‘Lost in Digital Woods’. This one just decides to push the boat out and be completely different from everything else, and I for one am all for it. It’s essentially just Pete playing the piano while reading out some poetry all Lou Reed style, weird timings and all. There is some still silence afterwards before some strange guitar sounds take us out. This feels INCREDIBLY Tool, finishing on a weird note, and almost feels like some sort of Holy Gift-type troll. However, it is very fitting for this album and the lyrics were fantastic. A pretty good end!

Overall: This was f’ing incredible. Everything about it was awesome, from the song-writing to the lyrics to the instrumentation, heck, even the album order. All of it felt purposely done and all of it worked so well. I have no idea why I haven’t listened to these guys much before, or at least not outside of their first couple of albums, but damn, I’ll be going back and checking out their last few immediately after finishing this writeup. This has leapfrogged all others to become my album of the year so far, and I think anyone else will have a very tough time knocking it off that spot. Check this out if you are in any way into rock music or just music in general, you will not be disappointed.

Score: 9.5/10