Good good things are happening in Hardcore these days. It's not to say it's all good, but with bands such as Title Fight, Rust Belt Lights, and Defeater, I think it's safe to say the future of the genre is in more-than-capable hands. Troubled Coast are a Post-Hardcore/Indie/Experimental band from the California Bay Area, who are following in these same footsteps.
Troubled Coast recently released their sophomore album, Letters, in late-March. Prior to this, the band had released the Vegabonds EP and their first full-length, 100 Miles From Home. When most people think of Hardcore they tend to think of short, fast songs from the '80s, or they think of heavier, modern-day, Post-Hardcore bands. While Troubled Coast is very much a Hardcore band, I think they belong somewhere in between these two styles; their songs are as melodic as they are dark and as abrasive as they are calm. The record draws techniques from various genres, and if you're musically diverse, I think the influences wouldn't be hard to identify. Consider Have Heart's sound and vocals, combine it with the acoustic Indie style of Transit, and sprinkle on top Failure's interlude-like build-ups with The Cure's vocal arrangements, and I think the result would be very close to this record. Sure, these bands don't have much in common at all, but it's my only way of effectively expressing how this isn't a traditional Hardcore record. My aim is to summarise the record, rather than going into song-specific details; I feel that if some songs are left unmentioned, it might trigger the readers to listen for themselves.
The 12-song, 38-minute-long album's opener, Amends, does a great job of setting the mood. Its upbeat drums and clean guitar riffs are an accurate representation of what the album has to offer. More than anything, the song should be considered as an introduction, at just over a minute and a half long. Moving on, Breathing starts off with an almost eerie, echoed guitar riff which eventually morphs into an impressive guitar solo bridge, and finally fades into only a mid-tempo, melancholic piano. This is probably the album's first display of the band's new-found diversity. The fifth track, It's Not Good For You, is one of the album's more aggressive songs displaying common traits of Hardcore music. This one should appeal to those only looking for what they've already heard before. The first time I heard XX/YY, it immediately reminded me of The Cure's self-titled album, mostly due to its spontaneous vocals which don't always seem to be in tune with the music behind it. Though this may sound like an imperfection, I believe it's artistically effective, and while not completely original, definitely uncommon. I found that more than a few songs on the record are mixed into each other, so if you're not looking at the titles while listening, you might find yourself a little disoriented. Absent Father, Holy Ghost proves and contradicts this; lasting at just over 5 minutes, this song is more or less three songs in one. The track starts off with a mellow interlude which evolves into the full-band body, and then ends with an acoustic portion - arguably the best listen on the album. The second to last track on the record, A Shallow Place, is probably the most relaxing song of the twelve. This one's another long one, at four minutes and twenty seconds. The song is predominantly driven by its bold drums and slow guitar, which could also be described as somewhat gloomy. As I mentioned earlier, songs with a length of over two minutes isn't a traditional characteristic of Hardcore music, but I also did mention this isn't a traditional Hardcore record.
The way I see it, the point of an album review is to portray an objective and unbiased perspective, and I think that wasn't too difficult with this particular record, given that I wasn't able to find a great deal of flaws. The record is undoubtedly a stand-out, however at times it did feel as though it piggybacks off what other similar bands are doing today. In any case, no man is an island, so if you listen to any of the bands I mentioned, or are just curious, I highly recommend giving this a listen.
Rating:
