SPACED : "No Escape"

Last year's "All We Ever Get" only earned an 8 because it leaned too heavily into a Turnstile-inspired sound. With that said, an 8 placed it above most hard-core pumped-out tracks that did not even get reviewed, and they have come into their own on this EP. Couple that with the fact that Turnstile is more of a pop band than a hardcore band now, and it leaves a void that must be filled, which finds SPACED stepping up their game to claim the empty throne. The songwriting is hookier, though the chorus tends to follow a similar formula that proves effective for the first three songs, all of which are under three minutes, making this perfect for the ADHD TikTok generation of ADHD listeners. 

The hooky riff that has become the pulse of "Pressure" is what redeems the song. Fun guitar solos are coming from the corners of this album. The gang vocals driving the attitude of "Dog Bite" set this aside from the pack. The only issue I have with the overall sound is that the drums sound a little flat and could have been given more love in post-production. I know you do not even have to tune your drum heads these days, and they can go back in to make them pop a little more. With all five songs clocking in at just over 11 minutes, leaving this one to play to write this review results in me listening to this album several times, and the more time my magnifying mind can hear things like the vocals not really holding the anger or grit expected from hardcore, he sounds like he used to sing for a pop punk band, but it works for their sound.

In the give and take of this album. the fact that it is more stripped down with a focus on the songwriting means some of the more experimental sounds heard on the previous album are not playing a factor here. It also makes me think that since the guitars have the punch I did not get from the Turnstill album, it makes me appreciate this more. Either way, it's a fun listen. I will give this one a 9.5, as it's a step forward for the band, advancing them to the top of the heap when it comes to what Gen Z wants from the kinder gentler vision of Hard Core these guys bring to the table. This Drops October 17th on Pure Noise Records.

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