Brigades – ‘Indefinite’ Review
Posted: by Sean Gonzalez
Indefinite is the debut LP by Brigades, a pop-punk band from South Carolina. They are a new band from Pure Noise Records, arguably the label that sports all that is pop-punk. Luckily, Brigades has a more rough around the edges approach to their songs, giving them a way to be identified against the rest of the genre/label.
The real thing giving this band life are the heavier aspects of their sound. Certain tracks will carry this more raw and bombastic ‘core’ aesthetic. It all starts with opening title track, ‘Indefinite’ which has clean vocals spiraling around screaming vocals that fit well together. The guitars would not be out of place on a Hundredth song for comparison, with the drums never really taking off into an exciting realm, rather stick to rolling around the snare and toms. After another gritty tune in ‘Knife Dance,’ listeners are shown the softer side of the band with ‘The Difference.’ The guitars have a more pop driven tone and feel, losing their raw power and just dragging along. It is not a bad change of pace, for me the band sounds better in their darker arrangements, take ‘Foxholes & Deathbeds’ for example. The song has that grim appeal to it, like an Alesana song might provide. The way the vocals float alongside the dark chord progressions gives way for the harsher screams to have more weight and depth.
The vocals make or break some of the songs across Indefinite. With twelve tunes, at times one tune can sound similar to another one. This is especially true as the back half of the record seemingly loses a lot of the more edgy and raw sound, save for ‘Running Blind.’ The choruses melodies are in fact different however, with great deliveries on tracks like ‘Undertow’ and ‘Fundamentals Of Being Sentimental.’ The slight rasp laced onto certain parts adds more grace and definitive power to certain tracks. ‘My Last Heart Attack’ is the standard ballad, adding a more reflective tone to the album. It’s an emotional outpour with decent lyrics.
Brigades is a band that shows a lot of potential in the upcoming years. The group showcases great talent with their ability to provide listeners with more rough sounding pop-punk songs, but the times without the roughness loses a bit of the magic and anthemic feel. Indefinite is worth a listen for fans of Forever Came Calling and the likes of Pure Noise Records in general.
Score: 7/10
Purchase the album right here! https://purenoise.bandcamp.com/album/indefinite
