Review Summary: burn in the sunlight, bleed on the beach
The word “adrift” feels a bit too harsh to describe Overgrow’s circumstances as of late, but one can’t deny its encapsulation of the band’s past year. In one sense, the band have undertaken the process of a physical relocation from Columbus, Ohio to right-wing media darling Chicago, Illinois, while simultaneously juggling the responsibility of locking in with a new lineup and facing the haunting reality of a health crisis. The consistency of the band’s output in spite of these obstacles is commendable; Jake Ciccotelli’s creative outlet released its debut full-length just last March, and have returned reinvigorated on 4-song EP
This All Will End, their feet planted victoriously on the chests of their hardships. The cohesion of this newly realized lineup of Ciccotelli, guitarist Alex Miller, bassist Pat Smith, and drummer Trevor Hancock is self-evident from the get go, and this all too brief release is sure to have listeners chomping at the bit for another full album of material.
Overgrow have always been one of those “potential” bands for me; 2022’s
Walls of Mirrors refracted flashes of brilliance through its recursive glass, but for every triumph like “Spread Thin” or the heart-stopping “Time Moves Slow”, a momentum-halting interlude or blurry conglomeration of similarly arpeggiated midtempo emo rockers would rear their heads. At times, it felt to me as if
Walls of Mirrors relied a bit too heavily on studio trickery, a sort of pleasant kayfabe that occasionally disguised brittle songwriting bones.
This All Will End sidesteps this pitfall thanks to how readily the emotional charge of its performances and lyricism translates to the listener, and especially because of how damn
tight Overgrow sound as a four-piece outfit. Where
Walls gradually built to an emphatic lifting of the curtain on prelude “Weigh Down”,
This All Will End opts to storm the stage guns blazing with opener “I’ll Ruin Everything That I See”, a bitter ball of righteous anger that expertly toes the line between its spacey verses and punishing refrains, punctuated by perhaps the heaviest riff in the band’s discography. Overgrow fans are no strangers to the higher peaks of Ciccotelli’s vocal register, but something about his performance here is rawer and more authentic. The burdens he’s been shouldering, named and unnamed, make their presence known through his voice on this track. Thankfully, his improvement in evoking emotion doesn’t just shine through his angrier performances; “Nowhere Without You” is a particularly salient example, an elegiac slow burn of a song that culminates in a climax just as powerful as “I’ll Ruin Everything”, only to suddenly recede and leave nothing but Ciccotelli’s vulnerable vocal, audibly shaking at the threat of a life without a loved one. The title track is equally evocative in this regard, and it’s made all the more effective thanks to some gorgeous harmonizing from featured vocalist GET TUFF.
I’ve reserved this section of the review to discuss lead single “When You’re Not Around”, an astounding musical achievement that stands as my easy pick for Overgrow’s best song to date. Each track on
This All Will End earns a sizable chunk of its emotional resonance through its lyrical themes, but “When You’re Not Around”’s vicious examination of relational betrayal is elevated to unforeseen heights by its enthralling musical backing. It joins an elite group of songs that enter stage right already kicked into fifth gear, yet somehow manage to keep ratcheting up the tension with each new section and repetition, until their intensity becomes impossible to withstand. The bridge of this track has to be heard to be believed. Ciccotelli’s vengeful diatribe against those who have violated his trust is accompanied by an absolute gut punch of an arrangement from the rest of the band, with Hancock laying into his kit like it owes him money, Smith supplying a formidable low end, and Miller’s distortion leaving no stone unturned. It’s a valuable snapshot of just how potent Overgrow’s new lineup is, and they’re just getting started.
This All Will End is a praiseworthy release from one of the most exciting bands in today’s emo scene, and it signifies a new and improved chapter in what is hopefully a long career for their new configuration; I’ll be waiting eagerly to see what they can do on a full-length record.
