Five North are a pop-punk rock trio from California, the band is made up of Tyler Posey (an actor and musician noted for his roles as Shane on VH1’s Scream: Resurrection and Scott McCall on MTV’s Teen Wolf or from performing in other bands such as Lost in Kostko and PVMNTS) on Guitar/Vocals, Kyle Murphy on Bass and Scott Eckel (who is also in Makeout) on Drums. Today, I will be reviewing their album ‘Scumbag’ which was released on March 6th 2021.
‘Drunk Cat’ hammers forward with high energy guitar, blended with hard, pushing drums that merge perfectly with Posey’s vocals. This track just captures everything that’s good about pop punk, the confrontational energy blended the softer pop sensibilities. It reminds me of listening to Blink 182 or Green Day in the early 2000s.
‘This Mess’ slows things down, heavier, grittier guitars and even harder bass and percussion that work really well with Posey’s voice. He has a voice that is capable of projecting, it was weight and energy, but still has a softer note that works really well for this track. There is also a phenomenal string section around the 2 minute mark, that bleeds into some heavy, screaming vocals that lead the track towards its conclusion in a beautiful frenzy.
‘Happier Now’ opens with a synthy trill, before opening up to a stripped back guitar and percussive line, that supports Posey’s more melodic delivery, showing more range to his voice. This track has a lot of energy, and a nice electronic backdrop that adds a different quality to it than the previous two tracks. So far each track has had a lot of forward momentum, and drive, and yet each has been distinctly different, showing the band has a lot of maturity and structure to their music.
‘Echo’ opens with guitars and and a sort of pop and crackle effect you get on old vinyl, and again we get to see Tyler’s vocal range and style, this is far more pop infused than the past few tracks, but it has the powerful strings and percussion that drive it forward at a nice pace. I really like how different each track is, and yet they fit well together as part of one bigger whole. The guitar work on this one especially was really impressive, particularly during the last 30 seconds or so.
‘Same Old Story’ again shakes things up, it’s far more subdued in terms of tempo overall, but it still packs a punch, a lot of hard driving vocals backed up by strong contributions from the guitar and drums. This track is also super catchy, cause I’ll usually listen to a potential feature for the site two or three times before sitting down to review it and yet after the first listen this track had stuck itself in my head. I can’t even really break down what it was, cause it had a great beat and rhythm, a catchy hook and the story told throughout, especially the talking parts all added to the track.
‘Homesick’ opens with a percussive heavy, string infused intro that builds nicely throughout, and more powerful vocals that just bleed passion and intensity. This album feels like a product of love, love of the music, love for the fans, love of just performing together. It all comes through in tracks like this which are just phenomenally well composed.
‘Back To The Day’ opens slow, with a building guitar line, and high energy, fast delivered vocals, with sort of dance with the heavier percussive beat. I really like the slowed down sections, we really get to see Posey’s vocals skills come out in this one, the harder, more furious vocals and the softer ones blending together well to create a visibly diverse and engaging track.
‘Whiskey Breath’ goes out on a high note, softer and slower, where most of the tracks have been high intensity, this strikes a different chord…if you’ll pardon the pun. That’s not to say it doesn’t have its high energy sections, but the tone and vibe of this track just comes across different and it serves as a fantastic closer to what has been an incredible album.
So that’s what I thought of Five North’s album ‘Scumbag’ and if you want to check that out for yourself then head on over to Spotify. While you’re at it, make sure and support the band by following them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
First Published on: https://offtherecordblog.org/
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