Seaway - Colour Blind Review

Seaway are a 5-piece Pop Punk band from Ontario, Canada that formed in 2011 and had previously released a few EPs and a debut album Hoser.

Hoser was the album that turned me on to Seaway and quickly became one of my favourite records of 2013. They really stood out to me by playing a really cool blend of more fast paced, aggressive, punk with ridiculously catchy and upbeat choruses that'll get stuck in your head for daiz.

In 2014 they released their 4-track EP 'All In My Head' which saw them step away from the more aggro style they had before to a much more lighter, slightly more old school Pop Punk sound that definitely got them more recognised across the glode, landing them a tour supporting Neck Deep here in the UK, as well as this year's Slam Dunk (which I missed cos I desperately needed a KFC before Fireworks' set started) and also getting themselves on Warped Tour in America.

So after that there was a shitload of hype around this band to drop their second album 'Colour Blind'. Right from the cover of an old TV with a back showing static and their name being displayed in that weird, swirly, pastel coloured logo that Turnstile used on their last album (swirly logo = funk??? will be discussed) you can see that this is definitely gonna have some strong 90's vibes on it.

There seems to be a lot of lolso 90s going on in the punk scene at the moment so being as cynical as I am when it comes to these things it looks like there may have been some band-wagon hopping going on here but at the end of the day do you really care? What are the actual songs like?

The album begins with Slam (no breakdown? :( - however if that is your thing check out the new Realm Of Torment record) which starts off with a nice clean guitar intro and then kicks off with a cry of 'EVERYTHING IS COOL MAN' which you can already hear being shouted in a tiny, packed room before the dozens of stage dives that would inevitably follow.

The second track, "Best Mistake" (which has such a great lolso 90s video go watch it) has an absolutely HUGE chorus on it which really sets the standard for the rest of the album. The drums in the verse are reminiscent of The Story So Far on their last two releases, and then that stadium sized, Blink-182 chorus comes in which is a brilliant combination of the old and new Pop Punk sounds.

"Trick" has yet another amazing chorus on it with both vocalists sounding so good on it, and you start to realise that maybe the prophecy is coming true and that tr00 Pop Punk is out and fun old skool Pop Punk is coming back.

It's backed up even harder by "Freak" which I think if this song came out in 2000, it would be as well known as My Friends Over You is now, it's THAT good. Also the dual, Four Year Strong/Set Your Goals-style vocals throughout this song sound so great and it's something that just sounds so cool to hear and I wish more bands did this sort of thing.

The next track, "Still Weird" is a continuation on the sound they had on their last EP that again has a very happy chill with yo friends atmosphere. It's a shame this album didn't come out in like July or something cos this whole album is full of summery jams.

"Stubborn love" really showcases both vocalist's abilities as they sound good on this track, I think this was meant to be the more emotional song on the album which is cool but Seaway are definitely a lot better when it comes to the fast paced fun stuff. And exactly that is on the next track "Big Deal". This song sounds a lot like State Champs but Seaway are being State Champs better than State Champs are, just because there's a bit more balls and edge to this song and record and whilst catchy, poppy music is cool, the punk spirit Seaway still have is what makes them the better band.

To be honest I don't really have much to say about "Airhead", I think it's ok but definitely a low point on the record, the same with "Growing Stale", although I am a sucker for bands reusing lyrics from earlier stuff so when I heard the 'Don't you go crying now' previously used on "Your Best Friend" from their last EP I was like yeaaaahhh.

"The Day She Left" is a real highlight on the record, a little more aggressive and punky than the rest of the album, but still has a great chorus and nice riffs on here. I would actually go as far to say this is my favourite song on here, maybe because it reminds me more of Hoser which is what made me like this band so much in the first place.

"Turn Me Away" isn't really anything special, it just feels like a bit of filler at the end of an album which is a bit disappointing but y'know ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. The final track is "Goon", the lyrics on here are proper cliché like y girls y :( but the song is still great and it's a really nice way to close the album. And I still kind of like the lyrics despite how lolzy they are.

On this album Seaway have definitely gone for a more polished kind of sound, moving away from the modern Pop Punk sound that bands such as The Story So Far and Knuckle Puck are known for to a sound that's a throwback to the early 2000's.

However there is definitely a fair bit of the modern scene still in there, which is why I'd say this is a perfect album for someone who really enjoys the old stuff and maybe isn't too familiar with the Pop Punk scene in 2015 as it encompasses many noticeable influences from the last 20 years of the genre and I feel that many older guys who loved this stuff as a teenager will be into this.

Quite a few Pop Punk bands have been trying to step away from the Pure Noise-core sound recently such as Neck Deep and State Champs and head in a similar direction however with this record I think Seaway have shown both of them up because this album is so sick.

There may be the odd dip with a few tracks but when Seaway are on they are ON and have made some great, fun tunes that should be looked back on as classics in 10 years time. Unless there's a second coming of tr00 in which case who knows what will happen. But for now this is a wicked record that you should definitely check out.

8/10

COMMENTS

• Lindsay Melbourne
  Cool review!