Listening to as much new music as we do and then sorting it into the cover/not cover pile is not only a lot of work but also leaves the stuff we genuinely like more often than not left behind after a feature so we can focus on the next new sounds coming across ye olde digital desk. That said, an indicator of something truly special in our book is when an artist or body of work that we’ve covered stays with us long after a review cycle is over. Enter “GIN”, off Bleach The Sky’s new EP Wash Away, which decided to randomly play on repeat in our brainspace the other day following a new Singles! review but before we had a chance to even check out the just released EP.
If earworms are your thing then by all means please dive headfirst into that aforementioned opener, you’ll be glad you did! And if you don’t like earworms… well, then we’re afraid we have some bad news for you regarding what’s on the horizon/in your immediate future if you dial into Wash Away. From there, the trio of Zach Kraft (Vocals/Guitar), Alexander Tighe (Bass) and Rahul Srinivasan (Drums) launch into a collection of songs that we think are pretty much guaranteed to stick around your headspace for some time, too. “Tail Light” is just as moving, if not more and subscribes to our belief that while the opener of any release needs to be a banger it’s the second track that’s gotta be the one that’s even more banger-ish to really dig those hooks into potential new fans. This one does all that and then some with soaring guitars which explode out of the robust rumbling from Tighe and Srinivasan, reminding us that, yes, there are still some guitar-driven Rawk acts out there that give a damn.
“Deadbolt” is all chunky riffage, rhythm section synchronicity and Kraft’s sweeping vocals as “Disguise” scales back the scope a tad but is still expansive with an epic chorus and vapors of early Puddle Of Mudd seeping through the framework (Look, 2001’s Come Clean still rules and someone needs to bring back the really emotive Alternative, right?) while “Into the End” tidies things up on Wash Away with a Jekyll and Hyde ripper that exquisitely blends Bleach The Sky’s bread and butter sonic strengths of heaviness and heart on one last bombastic bout of modern Alternative.
Wash Away is out now and can be yours by heading here or to the stream below! For more from Bleach The Sky, head out to the trail of socials found by clicking here or here. And for even more insight into Bleach the Sky, especially the making of Wash Away, you can check out the accompanying mini-doc located here.