A new self-titled album release from Unreal brings a soiree of classic genres together on one record and with it comes a robust and memorable character which is something you end up getting attached to very quickly.
The Unreal album is a blend of everything from postpunk to new wave, indie, and alternative rock, and loads more just coming through with a massive lushness and at times a great sonic presence as well.
The record is riddled with vast synth pads, keys, and guitars that have that certain depth and distance affected with reverb and chorus at times, and all those kinds of elements of the ones that bring in that blend of postpunk which for me can be very nostalgic at times.
The way they do this is outstanding because everything flows together seamlessly and their performances across the board are absolutely electric to the point where it feels like some of these songs were actually recorded live on the floor and everyone was feeding off of each other's energies the entire time.
Of course, I could be wrong about the whole live on the floor thing but, listening to this record makes you want to go see them perform it live simply because if this kind of energy and aesthetic is captured so well on record, then seeing it live must be awesome.
This was super addictive, and you can tell there was a lot of attention to detail but throughout it all it still doesn't lose that character or personality that it begins with and that may be the most important aspect of the entire thing. You can even hear elements of classic punk in there as well especially in the vocals at times.
The guitar work is outstanding and one of the biggest and most in-your-face elements of the record as a whole.
The tone of the guitar alone is enough to reach out and grab you, shake you around, and get your attention.
The songs have smart performances on every level and each element of the record seems to sort of complement the next or push the next further.
The punk element comes a lot from the tone of the bass also because it gives that extra edginess to a lot of the songs.
You also get some great elements of classic sort of 90s rock as well as bits of grunge here and there. It's been a long time since I've heard a record that takes so many different genres and puts them together so well.
Yes, they're almost all rock subgenres but being able to take particular elements of grunge, postpunk, punk rock, alternative rock, indie rock, new wave, and all this other stuff creates something new in a way.
And even though it is new, it still gives you bouts of nostalgia.
None of this would work if they hadn't nailed the aesthetic, they were going for but guess what? They nailed it.
This is one of those records that give you songs that are a little bit different as well. Some tracks are a bit more aggressive than others. Some tracks are a bit vaster than others. Some have more of a pop coating.
Listening to one or two songs from this release will not give you anywhere near the full spectrum of what the whole album has to offer.
You just don't want to miss any of that so I would suggest that you take half an hour or so and give this record a spin because if you grew up listening to any kind of rock in the 90s or early 2000s for example, you going to fall right in love with this record.
There are songs on this release that are fully danceable while there are others that make you want to sing along with the lyrics, fists in the air.
This indeed was a total soiree, and it has a lot of surprises around the corners.
The vocalist absolutely crushed it because he gives so much emphasis on certain elements of the songs and add this almost animated approach that can be more aggressive but also can be melodic.
So, the vocalist actually does an amazing job of again, kind of complimenting the band in a way.
The energy of the band and the vocal is completely match and that's something that you don't come across super often.
An outstanding record from beginning to end again, listen to the whole thing and don't be afraid to turn it loud because it sounds pretty damn good that way.
Dive into this record and see how it affects you.
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