Review Summary: A Skylit Drive's debut certainly shows potential. However, overall it lacks the identity, quality and consistency required for what they are attempting.
Sputnik has two main purposes in my mind; the first obviously being to express one’s own opinion regarding music and the second to introduce people to new bands. I mean I’m sure we’ve all read a review about an unknown artist, thought in our head “Who the f
uck is that and why is their record getting rated so high?” and than been compelled to check them out. That is exactly what happened with me and A Skylit Drive. Upon checking out a review and their online pages, I had my first questioned answered; A Skylit Drive is a post hardcore act from California. However, I am still quite perplexed as to why this album is being rated so highly. While at times showing flashes of creativity,
She Watched The Sky is a debut EP plagued by a very feeble and generic sound which falls short of showing their true potential.
It is apparent right away that A Skylit Drive is looking to have their music appeal to a large and ‘diverse’ audience. After all the way they blend their chugging breakdowns with melody lines, screaming with singing…err whining and their keyboard atmospheres with thumping rhythms sets to attract fans of metal, pop punk and everything in between. Unfortunately, the band at a very young age still has plenty of wrinkles they need to work out. One main grip I have about the album is the evident forcing of certain elements into their mix. While opening with a fury of screaming and intense rhythms,
“Drown The City” very quickly turns into a more melody driven verse with some chugs in the background. The keys and guitars deliver some respectable tradeoffs but overall it is not stellar. Vocally the verse is about the peak of the singing since it is very quietly delivered. When the vocalist goes for the higher singing a whine comes out. His tone definitely has room to be improved upon but potential is certainly there. Some catchy hooks are present, but they are simply annoying here due to his nasal tone. Screaming wise there is a fairly narrow range throughout, but things are far more tuned and consistent than the singing.
The inconsistent quality in the dual vocal styles unfortunately weakens the record. This shows especially on
“A Reason For Broken Wings” which opens in fantastic fashion. After an enjoyable moderately paced intro things pick up as some excellent screaming goes atop of a nice riffing session. The song is actually enjoyable until the singing comes out and from there things go downhill. Things overall become watered down and the singing becomes unbearable. His tone is just dreadful throughout the chorus and unfortunately the guitarists do very little to pull the song out of its slump. The dual screaming and singing section does sound slightly interesting but does not make up for the wretched singing and merely average instrumentals.
In terms of the rhythm section, things are quite irritating mainly thanks to production. The mix of the bass drum really hurts the record. For some reason when the double pedal work comes out they seem to want to accent every hit of the bass drum. As you guessed this practically eliminates all bass guitar from the record, as it is rare to hear a note. The majority of breakdowns and heavy bridges sound downright cheesy due to the mixing and the attempt to make them heavier than they are. The fact that these sections contrast immensely with the whiny choruses present does not help their cause either. Nor does the borderline filler track in
“The Past, The Love, The Memory”. Only three minutes in length, this track opens with a tedious and boring slow, faux-dramatic intro complete with cliché faint vocals. The fact that this takes up more than half of the song doesn’t really help its cause. It seems to ‘build up’ an epic sounding track but things end so abruptly the track comes off as incomplete, lazy and filler.
When the group takes a heavier approach, the result is much more enjoyable.
“Hey Nightmare, Where Did You Get Them Teeth” shines as a highlight of the record due to its large amounts of screaming and excellent music work. Guitars and keys really shine here as they create some memorable sections and do some subtle things very well. The moderate use of the singing keeps a grimace from forming and despite the cheesiness of the double pedals the group manages to create a superb breakdown. It builds up with the singer chanting in a listenable tone over a nicely done melody line before unleashing full fury upon listeners and marking the most emotional section of the record. Hell I can even go for its longish key outro. It’s dramatic, but the tracks quality actually warrants it.
“According To Columbus” proves once again how enhanced A Skylit Drive’s sound is when singing is kept in moderation. Keys do a nice job here with atmosphere while guitars stand out with their calculated riffs and progressions. The tiny chug section brings a wonderful melody line with it. Singing does not even kill this track as the singer stays in a more comfortable range. As good as this track is it is sad to see it come so late in the record. On the other hand, perhaps it is the majority of the previous work that makes the final track stick out as outstanding.
A Skylight Drive is a band in a very interesting spot, in my mind at least. They certainly have the ability to create some memorable heavy tracks with a strong key atmosphere and some interesting guitar sections. On the other hand, there are times when singing dominates a track with its dreadful tone and the guitarists compliment it with mere octave chords and more simplistic riffs. Along with that, some of the transitions heard are shoddy and certain songs lack a cohesive sound.
She Watched The Sky clearly shows the group is still figuring themselves out. Plenty of songs focus deliberately on catchy elements while others maintain a heavy focus. There is certainly potential on both ends but right now the group is in need of some improvement. First and for most the singing needs to improve its tone in the higher pitched sections as they can come off as just plain annoying. Also, the filler tracks have got to go, as they bring down this seven track EP drastically. Along with that if the group could fine tune some transitions, polish up a few dull sections, and establish a tighter overall identity, they could really compile together something exceptional. There is certainly room for improvement as A Skylit Drive is unfortunately landing below their full potential with their debut EP.
Final Rating: 2/5
