Review Summary: In which Posture & The Grizzly outdo themselves and then some.
The Posture playing on
I Am Satan is not the same Posture that churned out the snappy, energetic
Busch Hymns in 2014. Things have slowed down. Jordan's gotten a bit sadder. And frankly, absolutely everything has gotten way, way better.
From the deliciously warm guitar tones to the impressive instrumental track "Shooting Sparks,"
I Am Satan is bursting with characteristics that one might never have expected after giving a listen or two to Posture's debut. And while there's a pretty hefty Blink influence thrown into the mix, the sound is far more unique than anything most modern emo bands could ever hope to create. Tracks like the opener, "I Am Not A Real Doctor" - a demo of which was released on a late 2014 EP - and the aforementioned "Shooting Sparks," for example, capitalize on the full production tones to produce epic-sounding passages that wouldn't feel entirely out of place on your favorite post-rock record.
The absolute best moments on
I Am Satan shine brightest because of their wistful, sad atmospheres that many of Posture's more "fun" contemporaries struggle to pull off effectively. Album highlight "Mandy" - another track that has been vastly improved since the release of its 2014 demo - tugs on listeners' heartstrings with lyrics like "Just leave ('cause you know I will)/Say you'll never leave ('cause you know I will)/Never leave," evoking a sense of adolescent uncertainty that might be best left forgotten. The instrumentation, though, is what really brings the track to the forefront, with surprisingly pretty guitars abound, intensifying the nostalgia factor significantly.
"Delete Me," another standout, toys with listeners' emotions in much the same way - "And all you could say/'Some things aren’t suppose to say together'" - albeit at a slower tempo. This results in the band's longest track yet at just over six minutes.
Serving as the perfect penultimate track, "Kill Me" is the last of the three tracks that were originally dropped nearly two years ago. It includes many similar upgrades, such as the enhanced instrumental section toward the end of the track that pretty much justifies a full run through the record in itself, before giving way to "I Am A Real Doctor," an infectious acoustic rehash of the opener, which wraps up
I Am Satan on a slightly - but not by much - more upbeat note.
It's hard to put into words what makes this kind of album special. But whether it's the nostalgic vocal melodies, the flawless production, or the surprising amount of experimentation on the record that gets you to give
I Am Satan a listen, most emo fans can rest assured that it will be time well spent.
