Before I opened this blog, 90% of the time I used to just fulfill the requests of people on what to post. It was kinda cool, since someone always wanted something, the bands were always good and I ended up always having material to keep the previous blog alive. With this blog however, I changed my approach a bit. First of all, the blog was "owned" by me alone which enabled me to put more of myself into reviews, the writing becoming more personal. And for some reason, the style of band selection changed as well, since no longer do I pick the bands, but rather bands turned to pick the blog. I don't know how that metamorphosis happened and why, but it definitely opened new vistas for discovering music. Establishing a close connection with the artists whos music you are to write about really makes its imprint on the review, especially if the first contact is a friendly one.
Why the long intro? Well a bunch of times I encountered bands who make excellent music, but people are jerks, which takes away the passion the music is trying to get to the audience, at least for me (luckily no such bands on this blog, proud of that). And dear "Caravels" here really attracted me with how friendly they were at the first contact. It is amazing when someone says nice things about the work you do and when they recognize that you put your heart into it. So this review will be a sort of thank you for the recognition they showed.
"Caravels" are a quintet hailing from Las Vegas, Nevada bringing us tunes fused with elements of post-hardcore and early screamo. Personally, I find the combination of the said genres rater dull and plain, since many bands with such a mix of influences never really caught my ear. Hard for me to say why, basically I find it without that something that makes you go "wow". Well, shame on me for pressing play on Caravels with those thoughts in mind, because they pretty much impressed me!
"Floorboards" brings us 6 songs with a total of 25 minutes of music which you listen to with one single breath. They ooze with the thing I said I miss in the specific genre combination, a chest pounding and adrenaline pumping twenty five minute monster. You just press play and let it flow right to the end, not for a second wishing that some part wasn't there or that it lacks certain bits and pieces. Epic buildups, explosive crescendos, tune drops and slow bridges, everything is present but nothing is out of place, a perfect composition model. The production is superb for this type of music, since we are talking about quite loud, chaotic and "vast" tunes, so here you get to be able to focus on those various elements in the songs, because the recording has a clear sound despite the chaotic nature. This virtue actually cleared the way for me to notice some things that really blew me away. I myself being a bass player really notice that in many bands bass is in the shadow of other instruments. Either it's not very "alive" (despite the genre, be it sludge or screamo, no matter) or it is purely swallowed by the other sounds being produced by the band. In the tunes of "Caravels" it is a completely different story. All instruments are very well balanced and each of them is excellently discerned during songs. The bass itself amazed me quite much, it is highly melodic and has a powerful deep sound which really adds various levels and layers to the music. It is active and omnipresent, a very strong plus in my book.
As a contrast to the deep tone of the bass, the drums have a dull (not dull as in boring, dull as in blunt) sound, which contributes to the instrument equilibrium I mentioned above. And continuing on that, the guitars are actually somewhere between bass and drums, a bit of a mid field, rending and buzzing riffs, completing the circle. The vocal, I must be honest, didn't fit my liking at the first moment. I am quite much used to hearing screaming at various pitches and sections featuring "spoken word". Here it's a kind of constant raspy voice, somewhere between talking and screaming/yelling. Once I actually analyzed the songs, I really saw how this specific vocal performance goes perfectly with the music of "Caravels", simply because while you listen you can almost see them play. A scene where the vocalist is standing and literally preaching and storytelling while the entire ambient around him explodes with chaos and aggression. This ability to almost generate a visual aspect is really inspiring. And since I am mentioning the vocals, I definitely have to add the fact that the lyrics of "Floorboards" are simply amazing and you should absolutely read them, they add quite a bit of something to the overall tunes.
So in the end you come to realize that you are introduced to honest people making really heartfelt tunes. And it comes down to this, that this type of music was always about the community, people being connected by the thing that drives their passions. I'd like to thank Mike for contacting me and for showing me his band, it is really a project worthy of time and support.
Why the long intro? Well a bunch of times I encountered bands who make excellent music, but people are jerks, which takes away the passion the music is trying to get to the audience, at least for me (luckily no such bands on this blog, proud of that). And dear "Caravels" here really attracted me with how friendly they were at the first contact. It is amazing when someone says nice things about the work you do and when they recognize that you put your heart into it. So this review will be a sort of thank you for the recognition they showed.
"Caravels" are a quintet hailing from Las Vegas, Nevada bringing us tunes fused with elements of post-hardcore and early screamo. Personally, I find the combination of the said genres rater dull and plain, since many bands with such a mix of influences never really caught my ear. Hard for me to say why, basically I find it without that something that makes you go "wow". Well, shame on me for pressing play on Caravels with those thoughts in mind, because they pretty much impressed me!
"Floorboards" brings us 6 songs with a total of 25 minutes of music which you listen to with one single breath. They ooze with the thing I said I miss in the specific genre combination, a chest pounding and adrenaline pumping twenty five minute monster. You just press play and let it flow right to the end, not for a second wishing that some part wasn't there or that it lacks certain bits and pieces. Epic buildups, explosive crescendos, tune drops and slow bridges, everything is present but nothing is out of place, a perfect composition model. The production is superb for this type of music, since we are talking about quite loud, chaotic and "vast" tunes, so here you get to be able to focus on those various elements in the songs, because the recording has a clear sound despite the chaotic nature. This virtue actually cleared the way for me to notice some things that really blew me away. I myself being a bass player really notice that in many bands bass is in the shadow of other instruments. Either it's not very "alive" (despite the genre, be it sludge or screamo, no matter) or it is purely swallowed by the other sounds being produced by the band. In the tunes of "Caravels" it is a completely different story. All instruments are very well balanced and each of them is excellently discerned during songs. The bass itself amazed me quite much, it is highly melodic and has a powerful deep sound which really adds various levels and layers to the music. It is active and omnipresent, a very strong plus in my book.
As a contrast to the deep tone of the bass, the drums have a dull (not dull as in boring, dull as in blunt) sound, which contributes to the instrument equilibrium I mentioned above. And continuing on that, the guitars are actually somewhere between bass and drums, a bit of a mid field, rending and buzzing riffs, completing the circle. The vocal, I must be honest, didn't fit my liking at the first moment. I am quite much used to hearing screaming at various pitches and sections featuring "spoken word". Here it's a kind of constant raspy voice, somewhere between talking and screaming/yelling. Once I actually analyzed the songs, I really saw how this specific vocal performance goes perfectly with the music of "Caravels", simply because while you listen you can almost see them play. A scene where the vocalist is standing and literally preaching and storytelling while the entire ambient around him explodes with chaos and aggression. This ability to almost generate a visual aspect is really inspiring. And since I am mentioning the vocals, I definitely have to add the fact that the lyrics of "Floorboards" are simply amazing and you should absolutely read them, they add quite a bit of something to the overall tunes.
So in the end you come to realize that you are introduced to honest people making really heartfelt tunes. And it comes down to this, that this type of music was always about the community, people being connected by the thing that drives their passions. I'd like to thank Mike for contacting me and for showing me his band, it is really a project worthy of time and support.
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