ALBUM REVIEW: Sounds Of Acceleration – Riot Stares
Sounds Of Acceleration brings the winning formula that RIOT STARES put into their two EPs – 2016’s Riot Stares and 2017’s Let the Phase Speak – onto a full length album. Their love of music is something that is deeply ingrained in them, with their influences including QUICKSAND. However, the release is also a sombre one, as it is their final one. After guitarist Issy Varoumas passed away, the band announced there would be no more new music following this album.
Shockwave starts off with a roaring scream before hitting you full in the face with heavy guitars and drums. The nu-metal-esque opening track is unique. Does it flip-flop between genres? Yes. But that’s what makes it unique. You don’t quite know what you’re going to get. Whilst the rest of the song might be a bit overshadowed by the fantastic opening, there are moments of brilliance, such as the heart-pounding ending of the bassline that closes out the song. However, the rest of the song is a little lost, as if it’s not sure if it should be extremely heavy or go in a softer direction.
Thankfully, this is repaired in the next song, Relief Technique. A funky bassline drives the song along, and creates a fun bounce. The song itself has found an identity, and would surprisingly make a better opening than the actual opening song, simply because it has a clear sound. On the other hand, it is extremely short, at just over two minutes long, leaving a lot left open-ended. Next up is Trip Chain, a riotous punk song, and there’s a lot of anger packed into another short runtime. It does sound like a continuation of the previous song, which does hurt the pacing as instead of sounding like two separate songs, it sounds like one long song, but fortunately the singing and instruments are fantastic.
In fact, a lot of the songs sound extremely similar. Whilst this is understandable for a debut, which more often than not involves a musician finding their feet, it seems a lot of pressure for a band’s only album to be carrying. And to be honest, this album is a bit of a tricky one. It is clear that the band are doing what they love, and they are having fun whilst doing it, but the truth is if there isn’t a tracklist nearby, the songs merge into each other. That said, there are moments of pure genius, such as an echoing answer to gang vocals on Try To Spin. If the band had tried to focus on these fascinating concepts, then the album could have been something truly special.
Of course, if you are in the mood for energetic music, then this album is perfect, with enough high-energy to help with workouts, household chores or to just get hyped up. Burst is a perfect example of this. A fast-paced drum-heavy song, with a guitar solo thrown into its short runtime, it’s a shining point on the album. In fact, the album improves significantly in its second half, with more experimentation, such as spoken word on Flow To The Friction, and a hoodwinker of a closing song titled In Motion. It starts off slow, tricking the listener into thinking this would be an emotional closer. Then it kicks into a high energy song, with the band giving one final show.
Overall, Sounds Of Acceleration is an interesting album. The band have a lot of fun on it, and there’s no denying the infectious energy it. For their only album, it does unfortunately fall into the usual trappings of a debut record, as the first half of the record does sound largely the same. However, there are hints of uniqueness that are brought to the forefront of the latter half, creating a fun, poignant and riotous album. RIOT STARES have given it their all on a brilliant, if sometimes muddled, album.
Rating: 7/10
Sounds Of Acceleration is set for release on January 20th via DAZE.
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