Album Reviews

Released at the tail end of last year, I didn’t get round to Armatage Shanks’ new album because I was taking some time off from the site. But better late than never, right? The same can actually be said about this Norwegian band’s sophomore album. After all, it has been 12 years since these guys released their debut album, ‘Lost And Broken’.

When founding members Kristofer and Joakim reconnected after years apart, a creative spark ignited and they soon found themselves writing new songs in no time. Enter the rest of the band, and before you know it they were in the studio recording what would become ‘Story Untold’.

Following an atmospheric instrumental intro, Armatage Shanks kick ‘Story Untold’ off with the one-two punch of‘Leave The Lights On’ and ‘Here We Go Again,’ both of which reminded me of The Offspring. Melodic punk rock that isn’t too aggressive, but focuses on big melodic hooks and catchy choruses instead. Elsewhere on the album, the likes of Millencolin, Rise Against and Bad Religion come to mind as well. These guys wear their influences on their sleeves. Is that a bad thing? Not at all, because the songs are there and actually more than hold their own along those band’s output.

Hailing from Hamar in Norway, Armatage Shanks originally started out as a Green Day tribute band before transitioning to original material. And it would have been a real shame if they hadn’t done so. If you are into the Epi/Fat sound of the 90ies, then these guys have got you more than covered.

Story Untold tracklist: