“I’m haunted by this familiar face in me.”
It almost feels like the UK has a monopoly on groovy nu metalcore. Eight months in, and we’ve been blessed with releases from acclaimed bands such as Vexed and Graphic Nature, both of which have found varying degrees of success and recognition outside of the UK as well. Newcastle’s Creak, however, is one group you may or may not be familiar with, depending on your familiarity with the scene. Almost exactly three years have passed since the Geordies released their debut record Bitter Picture, so needless to say a follow up has been on the back burner for a while. Thankfully, made evident by the existence of this review, fans don’t have to wait too much longer.
A generous amount of singles have preceded the launch of Depth Perception, the act’s second full length LP that’s (finally) arriving on the 18th. Admittedly, I was a little underwhelmed by these. While Creak certainly doesn’t lack in impressive guitar work or two step-worthy rhythms to wake up a venue, their recent decisions in the production side of things haven’t sat entirely well with me. Connor Sweeney’s mixing in particular is quite jarring; Jack Dunn’s vocals are drowned out by a wall of raw, bombastic guitars and cymbals. This is not to say it’s all bad, as tonally, I rather like Creak’s approach with their guitar work. I just wish the mix stuck the landing by giving the rest of the instrumentation a little breathing room.
Following the respective releases of Depth Perception’s singles, I wanted to put my thoughts on the production in the back of my mind, as I wanted to analyze the creative aspects of the full release without personal nitpicks getting in the way. Now that I’ve fully digested the record, I can safely say this twelve track affair is no more or less than what I expected. It possesses a groovy, brutal main course with a side of bleak and dizzying atmospherics to help drive the record’s conceptual and lyrical themes. In short, it’s, well…. a Creakrecord, and whether this is good or bad remains to be seen.
“Crossroads” represents the initial plunge into Depth Perception’s dark recesses. From the moment the first guitar note rings out, it’s obvious Creak haven’t loosened their grip on their trademark heaviness. An array of two steppable riffs a la Slipknot follow, a reminder of where the scene’s roots lie. The track’s ending breakdown should also prove to be a good time in the pit.
As Depth Perception runs its course, however, it becomes clear there isn’t much in the way of variety. While Creak is undoubtedly strong in their craft, it almost feels as though the record would’ve benefitted from being an EP instead, as many of the tracks seemingly blend into one noisy backdrop. In many cases, consistency isn’t a bad thing, but in the case of Depth Perception, I was found wanting more. As many of these tracks find themselves in various playlists of mine, that may remain my preferred format of consumption for this record.
If there’s one aspect of this record that’s especially commendable, it’s the moments of ambience that serve as buffers between some of the tracks. For example, as “Harrow” reaches its outro (followed by some pretty sweet guitar work, might I add), a bleak hellish ambience engulfs the track before seamlessly transitioning into the album’s “ballad”, “Left to Heaven”. This is a nice change of pace for the record, even if it comes on a little too late in my opinion. Regardless, it builds on the ambience that began with the previous track’s conclusion in such a way where it isn’t forced, adding to the overall cohesion of the experience.
“The Early Hours Know My Secrets” is another noteworthy mention, primarily due to its brief but destructive breakdown that graces the one minute mark. A sludgy riff backed by a simple hi-hat groove is a combination that simply scratches an itch, and I found myself rewinding this part more than once. It’s also worth mentioning that, while Jack Dunn is absolutely buried in the mix, his vocals are powerful, particularly in this song, and suit the band’s sound in a way that I think is irreplaceable.
The remaining three songs bear no surprises; rather, they are simply Creak doing Creak things. At this point, I would’ve liked the album to reach some kind of crescendo or climax, but it doesn’t really come to fruition. Again, the music here is not bad by any stretch. I guess I just expected a little more, especially after such a large gap in the band’s catalogue. I’m sure there’s reasoning for this that’s beyond anyone’s control, but as it stands, Depth Perception concludes satisfactorily at best.
Depth Perception is a solid, if a bit meat and potatoes, addition to England’s nu metalcore lineup this year. A stronger production effort and a bit more in the way of songwriting flavour might shoot Creak’s next release to the top. Here’s hoping they can really prove themselves when it comes along.
7/10
Depth Perception is out August 18th via Prosthetic Records, and can be pre-ordered here.