ALBUM REVIEW: No More Sound – Sad Park

Alternative emo-punk outfit SAD PARK are back with their third full-length record No More Sound, which also marks their first album released for Pure Noise Records. The band themselves have stated that the record represents four things: life, death, love, and time, along with the aim of representing the human condition with a sense of melancholy. Now, this is where things become slightly frustrating as, yes, they do succeed in creating a melancholic vibe, yet at the same time this album is unfortunately a bit hit and miss, especially in the first few tracks.

When it comes to emo as a genre, some people will always accuse it of being nothing more than endless whining, which we, of course, highly disagree with. Yet SAD PARK seem to fall into that stereotype on a few occasions. Second track Always Around, which starts out promising with a gentle take on alternative rock with some influence from indie rock, starts to sound rather indistinguishable from other artists within the same genre and the moments where you can tell that they’re trying to come across as angry with harsh vocals end up sounding like pure whining. It’s unfortunate when this happens as you can genuinely tell that the band are giving their all and are truly passionate with what they’re doing. Sadly, it’s the same story with subsequent track OMW!, as well as Carousel later on, which has the potential to be a lovely, gentle song but is overshadowed by this issue along with some strange pitching in the electronic breakdown.

That’s not to say that the entire record falls flat; aside from the issues mentioned above the band have essentially produced a solid rock album that truly captures the essence of what they aimed to represent. Stand out moments include Watch The World Fall Down, a pleasant alternative rock song that feels nostalgic and creates a atmosphere that is both gentle and sweet; The New Slow that has you imagining being at the beach with its guitar style that feels so familiar yet at the same time perfectly represents a melancholic mood that follows the brain overthinking; and Art Will Be Gone that is simply upbeat and catchy with a fun twist of using brass instruments, and, hear us out, it genuinely sounds like one of the songs that would play on The Sims 2 radio. Seriously!

Ultimately though, No More Sound is a strange one, because for the most part this record is fun to listen to and offers a range of moments that would make it stand out, yet it does still face the teething problems of the sometimes whiney vocals and elements that can make it blend in with other artists in the scene. A real mixed bag here.

Rating: 6/10

No More Sound is out now via Pure Noise Records.

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