Review by Jess Williams
Scottish pop-punk rockers Twin Atlantic have delivered a speedy follow up album to their 2014 release Great Divide. Their newest album GLA, due out September 9th, sees the band drift apart from their recent sound and venture backwards by channeling their rebellious punk roots in a somewhat distant territory. It is exciting to see the band take a fresh turn and deliver an album that clearly paints a picture of the lavish lifestyle of rock n’ rollers in their leather jackets, leather boots and Harley Davidson’s.
The album opens with “Gold Elephant Cherry Alligator”, a head banging and heavy guitar anthem. The song is followed by “No Sleep”, a track that offers a self-examination of the band’s lifestyle as a whole with the lyrics “I take pills and I drink alcohol / Ready or not the dream has got to stop”. The song offers an ear worm chorus that is pleasingly situated between verses that seem less refined, more rough.
Despite the seemingly rough persona that this album has created, it has its weaker moments, offering the listener a look into the softer side of Twin Atlantic in the acoustic-driven “A Scar To Hide”. The album closes with “Mother Tongue”, a track that allowed lead singer, Sam McTrusty to show off his smooth and strong vocals. A seemingly monotone end to a rock n’roll album that triggers the influences of bands like Buckcherry and Sixx:A.M.
GLA offers listeners a different side of Twin Atlantic, a side that venture away from the sounds that got them radio play from Great Divide. However, while GLA is not perfect, it does lead listeners into an exciting direction for the Glasgow group.
Download: “Gold Elephant Cherry Alligator,” “No Sleep,” “A Scar to Hide”
Rating: 3.5 / 5
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