Album Reviews

UK’s Goodtime Boys have already been refining their sound for a couple of years now. Last year’s addition of two new members ((Lewis Johns on guitar and Casey McHale on drums) probably was a further big change for the band, one of which we can now hear the result on “Rain”, the band’s first full-length for Bridge Nine.

If you’re looking for some post-hardcore along the lines of Pianos Become The Teeth, Defeater and Touche Amore, then you’ve come to the right place. Vocalist Alex Pennie has the kind of throaty bark that suits the style well while the rest of the band lingers between controlled aggression and more atmospheric parts. These guys keep a brisk pace, changing up the rhythms on a regular basis while maintaining a nice flow throughout the different songs. It seems they went with a slightly more straight-forward sound this time around, not overthinking certain parts but just going full out on emotions.

It makes for a bleak album that is pretty decent even if I miss the intricacies that can be found on say, La Dispute’s recent release to make “Rain” a real stand-out in the genre.