“Drifting through the liminal.”
Lockdowns owing to the pandemic stunted the plans of a lot of bands. Numerous bands came out with smashing hits in this daunting period & Boston Manor are one of them. With their first proper release on their newly signed label, Sharptone Records, Desperate Times Desperate Pleasures consists of some of their best material to date. Drifting a little bit further from their emo & pop-punk routes, the band has incorporated more elements of metalcore while still remaining true to their own sound. This comes in the form of a little EP comprising of five vibe-y songs.
Foreshadowing the announcement & release of the EP, “Carbon Mono” & “Algorithm” serving as the already released singles give a perfect taste of what was to come. The former being a more metalcore leaning song that wastes no time demarcating the shift in sound & the start of a new era for the band. The latter however, is more similar to their older pop-punk infused catchy bangers. It’s a gradual evolution in what would be a mixed song that follows. “Desperate Pleasures” starts off with a blast of guitars that fades out into a more alternative rock & catchy hook. There are beautiful hints of synths jam packed in between the instrumentation that truly add to the hooks.
“I Don’t Like People (& They Don’t Like Me)” is easily my favorite Boston Manor song of all time, let alone on this EP. A slow but heavy track; a moody vibe akin to some of Yonaka’s songs from earlier this year is the perfect amalgamation of pop-punk & metalcore. “Let The Right One In” might deceivingly be mistaken for a generic ballad that every godforsaken band loves to end their releases on, but it is not. Quickly building on the momentum set by the previous four tunes, crooning guitars elevate the song around the middle mark to provide a great touch of atmosphere.
Another change that this EP signifies is a lack of the more harsher vocals frontman Henry Cox has demonstrated on their previous releases. I much prefer the cleans he so magnificently performs throughout this EP. Delivered with utmost emotion that gets the message the band is trying to convey across, the band is all set to get even bigger in the scene.
Desperate Times Desperate Pleasures is out on October 29th via Sharptone Records & you can pre-order it here. For all things music, keep your eyes peeled on Boolin Tunes.
8/10