Monday 26 March 2018

Album Review: Keep This Close by Invaluable


Invaluable are a four piece punk rock band from Virginia Beach. Influenced by the likes of Propagandhi, Converge, The Replacements, The Flatliners and Hot Water Music, Invaluable recently released a new EP named Keep This Close.


Keep This Close begins with the song A Beautiful Fucking Bird. Starting out with some dirty guitar feedback before a crashing, unforgiving start. This is raw punk rock music - no thrills just straight up aggression. In an era of punk rock where it's mostly melodic and technical, hearing this style is quite refreshing. Vocally again it's all about being raw - there is no autotune here, just real, angry passion. The second track, The Battle Of Virginia Beach starts out with some slow guitar and some cymbal beats before a pounding drumbeat ups the ante gradually. This is a slower paced song that really relies on the band's musicianship and songwriting skills. The song builds brilliantly, having you right on the edge of explosion before things really kick off. This track allows Invaluable's lead singer to show off an impressive voice that really steals the show on an excellent song.

Up next is I Came, I Saw, I Drank. On this song Invaluable make you believe that they are continuing with their brand of mid tempo punk rock and by this point of the EP I'm hooked on this band. The guitar work is beautifully simple at the start of the track and pulls you into the song tremendously. It's not long before some fast paced guitar and some machine gun like drums get the party going though. There's a maturity about this punk rock, sure there are hooks a'plenty and the chorus is instantly accessible, but there's also a feeling that this is punk rock by grown-ups for grown-ups. The fourth and final track is titled A Death, So Pale. At over five minutes long it's a bit of an epic but it really shows off exactly what I think Invaluable are all about. It features the softer, slower sections, the perfect builds and some raw intensity that just blows you away.

Keep This Close left me wanting more and more. Invaluable play a style of punk rock that we don't often hear anymore. The mix of old school and new works brilliantly and creates a sound that fans of all the different genres of punk rock will enjoy.

Stream and download Keep This Close here: https://invaluable.bandcamp.com/album/keep-this-close-2

Like Invaluable here: https://www.facebook.com/invaluablevb

This review was written by Colin Clark.

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