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When you look at TURNSTILE at the surface and a basic knowledge of the band, you think “hardcore band”, but once you peel everything back you see that they are indeed a hardcore band, but with so much more added to it. Their latest album, Never Enough is an arc de triomphe of leftfield moments and genre hopping tunes that are expertly intertwined with powerful punk riffs that at times makes you want to jump about and slam into a mass of sweaty bodies or sit looking at the stars on a clear night contemplating what life is. After they took over the world with their last album Glow On, it was hard to see how they could improve from there, Never Enough however shows the band plans world domination as their next step.
The album’s namesake, Never Enough is first up on the record. Soft synths play as frontman Brendan Yates’ voice echoes in an ethereal manner which helps you think that you’re floating before the percussion hits and the powerful driving riff and huge drum kicks in which starts the party proper, it’s a great opener as it lays the foundations and standard for what is to come. The song doesn’t quite have an ending which is a theme that runs throughout Never Enough as it segues beautifully into SOLE which brings some heaviness quite early on with a swirling nature that is a sure fire way to get the crowd moving when the songs are brought into a live setting. SOLE itself is so clean cut, it should be on display in an art gallery. I Care is the first song to truly shake things up on the record focusing heavily on a pop sound with a slight psychedelic hint to it which is incredibly reminiscent of THE SMITHS before launching back into a riff heavy track.
Dreaming is a driving, pulsating track that is a bonafide punk track yet throws a curveball with the use of a brass section which gives a latino flavour to the album as the it helps Never Enough constantly evolve and go from strength to strength as Yates’ echoey vocals help pack the album with atmosphere. Light Design is a continuation of what album opener Never Enough gave us and acts as a sibling to the track, packed with atmosphere and rich production, it’s short, snappy and brings a calm before the storm as it seeps over into the next track Dull. Despite its title, this track is far from it with its glitchy vocalistions and electronic quirks amidst a flurry of guitars. Sunshower builds on the albums momentum and gives us a song that is the closest to a hardcore track on the entire album, your mind will conjure circle pits aplenty whilst listening to it before it tails off into a shoegaze-y finale that instantly brings you into a calm sense of being as flute solos softly wash over you.
Just after the halfway point of the album we hit a near seven minute opus Look Out For Me which is guided by a trippy guitar effect as it progresses through yet more trippy ambience but evolves with a punchy hardcore section which has a terrific bounce to it whilst sampling dialogue from The Wire. Ceiling follows, serving as an interval of sorts lasting just over a minute before evolving into the 60s-esque surf rock track pumped full of reverb and psychedelic sounds Seein’ Stars which once again finds them relying heavily on THE SMITHS influence. As we make our way towards the journey’s end with Never Enough, we get to the track Birds, a barn storming and sinister sounding hardcore track which builds and builds beautifully full of massive sounding guitars that hit you like a hammer hits an anvil. SLOWDIVE follows suit as it slows down proceedings but still packs a punch with it relying heavily on the guitars to drive the song to a victorious end whilst Brendan Yates gives one of his best ever vocal performances as the song reaches its climax.
The final two tracks take us by the hand and bring Never Enough to a triumphant close. Time Is Happening is a fun pop-rock sounding track packed full of distortion and wavy vocals once more before fading out into an ambient atmosphere that brings us into Magic Man, the final track on the record. The ambience continues in the same way it brought us into the record, giving it a full circle moment as you sit back and contemplate about what you’ve just listened to before all you can hear is waves lapping. You take a moment where all you can do is start the record all over again. TURNSTILE have smashed it out of the park once more.
It’s safe to say that by the end of this year, Never Enough will be on many AOTY lists, even at the very top. From start to finish this album is unpredictable, fun and packed full of flavourful music moments that makes picking a best track almost impossible. When we’ve had incredible hardcore albums from the likes of KNOCKED LOOSE in the last year which does very little with the genre (albeit expertly), TURNSTILE dare to look passed the confines of the genre and look at how it can fit other styles into it whilst still remaining true to their roots, creating a sonic love letter to music that guides you on one hell of a journey.
Rating: 9/10
Never Enough is out now via Roadrunner Records.
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The post ALBUM REVIEW: Never Enough – Turnstile appeared first on Distorted Sound Magazine.
