Late-last summer, Stanley And The Search released a five-song EP, titled Weight. Nearly a year later, we have Weightless: an eight-song record, featuring three brand new songs; nothing apparent has been changed on the previous songs, aside from their order. In all honesty, this record could have been a three-song, eight-minute EP, featuring the new tunes and worked just fine.
“Anatomy” is the first of the new tunes we get to hear, which comes immediately after the short, and arguably unnecessary “Crossing (Intro)”. “Anatomy” feels and sounds like an opening song. The guitars and drums hit you immediately and before you know it, you’re sucked into the song with the catchy and singable vocals. Though short, “Anatomy” hits on all the parts of a song you want to hear. Great verses, a catchy chorus, and a distinct bridge section allow the listener to never have a moment of boredom through the song, which ends at the perfect time.
“Punch The Clock” and “Calendar” follow next and as pointed out in our review of Weight; both songs are superb examples of the great songs Stanley And The Search can make. The drumming throughout the record is superbly done and all together just rad, but both of these songs stick out as where the percussive elements of the songs goes above and beyond great.
“Leave It” is next and sadly, the minute-plus outro of microwave noises, static, and ambiance are still there, which slows the pacing of the album and throws the listener completely out of the loop, especially when listening to the record front to back. After “Leave It” comes the real treat of new songs, “Pinebox” and “Dust You Off".
“Pinebox” feels like a single. This isn’t a bad thing, it just lends itself to be a very likable song without really doing anything above and beyond what is expected. The chorus is catchy and easily memorized. A stellar second verse breaks up the song nicely and doesn’t allow the listener to become complacent with things they’ve already heard. The last minute of the song doesn’t feel forced, which can sometimes happen when a song moves into the bridge. The ending fits the mood created by the song perfectly and makes the transition into the calm, but emotionally impactful “Dust You Off” smooth and natural.
“Dust You Off” itself is a fine song. We’re presented with a basic clean guitar riff and calm vocals for the first real time on the entire record. The song escalates to an emotional climax and builds, only to let you off with the lyrics “I’m fading away” and the guitar riff we’ve been enjoying the majority of the song. “Dust You Off” also does something important in that it prepares you for the records end. Not many albums do this well. The pacing of these last 3 songs is nearly perfect.
I still struggle to see why the re-release of the 5 songs along with these new ones was necessary. The three new tunes definitely fit in stylistically and thematically and all of them help the pacing of the old EP, but ultimately, they could have and should work better as a three-song EP. I’m still very fond of this record and these songs, I’m just turning into the greedy fan who wants more from Stanley And The Search.
Tracklist:
1. Crossing
2. Anatomy
3. Punch The Clock
4. Calendar
5. Leave It
6. Pinebox
7. Dust You Off
8. Sinking Feeling
RIYL: The Swellers, Polar Bear Club, The Menzingers
Rating:
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