I have a soft spot for bands whose lead singer sounds like they gargle with razor blades. And whose drummers feel like they have a drum superglued to every appendage they own. And who flail at their instruments with such seeming abandon, and yet such actual skill!
Boasting a properly tuneful chorus amongst all the riffing, blistering drums and extraordinarily accomplished aggression, Stuck in the Way is a spitting, vicious powerhouse of a track, and a true mission statement at the top of their latest EP (Human Crown) on Bandcamp.
The sheer speed and energy on display leaves the casual listener sonically trampled under the BPM, but that’s not to imply that this is animalistic thrashing: the skill to syncopate, and the skill implied by the chosen guitar sounds are coupled with a vocalist who (at times) sounds like The Offspring’s Dexter Holland has put on some big boy pants and learned how to growl properly.
There’s also some amazing colour and wit to both the vocal performance and the guitar solo moments that elevate The Unbroken’s message beyond what you might expect.
The dynamics of Stuck in the Way move between tribal boisterousness to unexpected percussion effects to wah-wah guitar phrasing to tightly syncopated vocals and siren pedal guitar notes… it’s a rich portrait that The Unbroken are painting and it’s safe to say that there’s never a dull moment.
A quick shout out to the mix engineer, too – can’t imagine how hard it is to carve out space for such huge slabs of sound and make it all sit this well!
Grab the single via Bandcamp.
