Back with a new album after a six year break, ROBBIE TOWNSEND listens to Melbourne band Antiskeptic’s latest…
Album: Stare Down The Ocean
Artist: Antiskeptic
Year: 2014
Label: Independent
In A Word: Strong
Antiskeptic are back and they have returned from their hiatus bigger, better and stronger than ever with the release of their highly anticipated third studio album Stare Down the Ocean. Crowd-funded by their loyal fans, Stare Down the Ocean is sure to bring a very big smile to the face of every single one of their paid up fans.
Long-time fans will be pleased to know that while the band has changed shape with new members, the classic punk/emo sound of which the ‘skeppers’ were the kings hasn’t changed a bit.
Produced by Forrester Savell (Karnivool, Dead Letter Circus, Cog), Stare Down The Ocean retains everything good about the past…and then turns the volume up! The big moments are bigger, and the lighter ones are deeper and wider.
Familiar pulsating guitar lines and snare drum bombs are plentiful in the anthems Hey Dissident, When The Night Comes In and I’ll Follow, and Andrew Kitchen’s vocal is as strong and passionate as ever from start to finish.
It is in the lighter, close your eyes and sway moments of Play In Reverse and New Horizon that we are introduced to a new sensitivity and depth not heard before with the two guitar parts seeming to almost cry in harmony together.
Stare Down the Ocean is a strong, confident release that is sure to take Antiskeptic’s many fans on an enjoyable trip down memory lane.
