Dreambound – 16 April 2021
Good EP, but I’m more excited for what they’ll do next
At its heart, All Hours is a Paramore-style pop punk band that has also spent some time listening to post-hardcore and metal. Their new EP Perspectives reads a lot like a proof of concept on that description. Every hook is really catchy and there’s a lot of energy, some out of left field metal-esque guitar moments, and a drum sound that makes me feel like I’m at a show in 2006. They don’t really take the form too much further than that, although there are some pretty surprising moments that stick out a lot to me (The beginning of “Downward” implies that the band and the record are going to be VERY different – more on that later). In general, All Hours sounds like pretty much what you’d expect them to. That doesn’t make it bad, but at the same time it would be great to hear this band get a little bit more out of their comfort zone.
I try to not talk too much about specific production elements in my reviews, because I think it creates a barrier to discussion that folks who haven’t spent time in recording studios are ready for. But I do want to take a second and talk about the drum production on this record that really doesn’t jive with me. There’s something about the mix across the whole EP that makes the drums feel like they’re in a totally different space. When you record in isolation it can be hard to create the illusion that the band is performing together, and this is a great example of a time when there’s enough sonic separation between the drums and the rest of the band that leaves the record feeling off kilter. All this is to say that I bet All Hours would be really fun live. Their YouTube channel doesn’t have any live videos, but I’m going to bet that I’m correct.
“Downward” is by far the best song on the record. The switch between screaming and melodic singing (Side bar: Screaming is a kind of singing. Rapping is a kind of singing. Music reviewers: Get better at describing the kind of singing you’re describing) is really well timed. “Downward” is a song that has a lot cliches of the genre but they’re all really fun and the band has such a good energy that it really doesn’t matter. The biggest disappointment for me as Perspectives moves on is that that all the vocal changes in “Downward” that work so well get totally abandoned. Vocalist Dani O’Grady commands our attention (and her voice is great and she deserves that space) but I would have loved to hear those screams come back even as a supporting act.
All in all, Perspectives is a record that’s worth taking a listen to if you’re already into similar acts. If you’re not, this isn’t the record that’s going to change your mind. All the songs are good and the band is real tight (and like I said above, they sound like they’re great live), but they haven’t quite broken out of the trappings of the genre yet. All that being said, go listen to All Hours, because bands deserve the space to discover who they are, and without fans backing them up, we can’t expect them to do it.
Musician and writer – I play in Cheap City and run Dollhouse Lightning
