ALBUM REVIEW: Big Vibe – Seaway

Emerging out of pop-punk revival of the early 2010’s, Canada’s SEAWAY emerged as an energetic, talented and fun contrast to a lot of their ‘sad boy’ counterparts at the time. At the helm, lead vocalist Ryan Locke set the band apart with a perfect blend of grit and melody that made the band instantly infectious and a welcome addition to the era’s pantheon. After three solid pop-punk records, the band’s new record, Big Vibe, aims to paint the band in a new light with new brushstrokes. A solid, if at times disjointed mix of anthemic, early 2000’s pop-punk and lush 2010’s pop rock, the band proves on Big Vibe that they have an incredible knack for big hooks and crafting songs that, while not all of them memorable, provide a backdrop of fun and energy that deserve a wide audience.

The record comes right out of the gate swinging with Brain In A Jar, and immediately it sets the tone and sound to come of about half the record. The song really captures the vibe of one of the golden ages of mainstream pop-punk, the early 2000’s. The song brings to mind early ALL AMERICAN REJECTS and early ALL TIME LOW. Locke’s voice fits the full and thick guitars and drums the band is laying down. It’s the sound of a raucous and wild party with great harmonies that highlights a huge strength of the record: really great production. It’s big, it’s booming, and it’s meant to be listened to nice and loud.

Tracks that continue to capture the American Pie soundtrack sound are tracks like the title track, Big Vibe, which calls to mind bands like SUM 41 and SIMPLE PLAN. The instrumentation is simple and uncomplicated, but incredibly hooky. The chorus is huge on this song, and there’s a thick, lush sound that makes this an uncompromisingly big song. Still Blue takes a more straightforward skate punk tempo with another great pop punk chorus in the tradition of Seaway’s first three records. Pathetic, and Wicked are both songs meant for jumping up and down to, and they definitely project a summery, easy going vibe meant to go along with sunny days and a beer in one hand and a hot dog in the other.

Further along this sound is Peach, a big highlight of the record. Instantly recalling the sound of SUM 41’s In Too Deep, this song features especially great vocals from Locke and some of the catchiest hooks on the record, which is saying a lot considering just how catchy the rest of the record is. The guitar work falls in lockstep with the vocals and the two mesh perfectly. Sick Puppy as well ends the record with more great, driving hooks and guitar work that are rolling and powerful. Again, huge credit goes to both the production, mixing, and musicianship in equal measure.

Where the record derails a bit is in the disjointed nature of its other half; the half that falls more in line with pop rock bands like WALK THE MOON. Though the band still takes great care to craft hooks upon more hooks, and Locke’s voice seems built just as much for pop-punk as it does straight up pop, the tone between the two halves never seems to quite mesh. Mrs. David, has a cool, dance-y opening and is a groovy track that is the first indication of the different sounds, but songs like Wild Things, and If You Let Me don’t really stand out as much despite their big choruses. They manage to be bouncy and fun, but don’t have the bite that the more pop-punk songs on the album do, nor do they feel as much fun. Sweet Sugar is the song that feels the most successful of these tracks, and Locke’s singing stands out the most on this one and carries it further than the rest. But as a cohesive unit, this group of songs is the round peg in the square hole.

If SEAWAY have proved one thing on Big Vibe, it’s that they can slow down and really carry themselves on hooks and melodies. They don’t need a frantic pace or push pit inducing breakdowns to set themselves apart. They have song-crafting and melodic writing skills in spades. They have a talented band and an excellent and versatile singer to lead them. And on this record, they succeed in creating a record that is massively fun and a perfect soundtrack to the joyful days of life. But with some more focus using their expanded toolkit, this band will be well on their way to more mainstream notoriety and even more exciting future releases that can turn what they can do best up to 11.

Rating: 7/10

Big Vibe is out now via Pure Noise Records. 

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