You may be slowly noticing just how many great records have been trickling out of Ireland in the past few years, and with an in-flux of awesome bands, that trickle is set to become a tsunami. The newest to emerge is the second EP from Belfast boys Stillpoint, and it’s a goodie.
Despite its long-winded title ‘Some Lessons Hurt Like The Truths They Contain’ is a tightly packed unit of epic proportions. Over the disc’s five songs the band have managed to locate that perfect plateau between melody and heaviness that a lot of bands nowadays merely strive towards. Their particular brand of riff rock sees them soaring through hook-laden skies, fusing accessibility with all out heavy riffage.
Opener ‘Blind Drunk In Sastas’ reeks of sarcasm and spite, with the discordant guitar opening almost as blood-red in colour as the lyrical content. Vocalist David McKendry’s emotive, hook-laden vocal melodies hit home just as hard as the thundering rhythms of drummer Will Woods.
Second track ‘A Plea For Action’ sees the first real heavy section, a massive atom bomd of riffage, with Jack Courtney’s creepy bass lick acting as conductor while ‘Slaves’ is a ‘leap-around-like-a-mentalist’ track, designed for the thronging, hectic crowds that are destined to populate their future live shows.
Stillpoint’s second effort shows serious songwriting maturity, with each piece managing to be simultaneously complex and accessible and will surely appeal to audiences from heavy metal to proggy Oceansizey goodness right the way down to indie pop. This is most evident in the anthemic ‘I Know What A Monster Looks Like’, which has the potential to be a massive radio hit if it wasn’t for the foul mouthed (and brilliant) chorus.
Final track ‘Start Fires’ is the perfect culmination of everything they’ve displayed so far, massive, soaring and anthemic all rolled into one with a final chorus that NEEDS to be chanted along with.
Comparisons to Biffy Clyro are a little too easy to make sometimes, however these guys aren’t another revival band. The sheer energy in these songs is enough to firmly plant Stillpoint among the most exciting up-and-coming bands in the UK and Ireland right now.
Released on September 6th with a launch show in the Bunatee bar (QUB Union) with the mighty John Gillen (Nocturn) filling in on drums as unfortunately drummer Will and the band have parted ways recently.
Posted by Eóin Boylan.
