You Win Again Gravity wear their influences on their sleeve. Inspired by Deftones and Northlane, the Windsor quintet play melodic post hardcore, adding colossal soundscapes and a refreshing technical edge. This was demonstrated on their early EPs, Brightly Coloured Landscapes and Let Go Lightly, both of which showed potential but lacked a big production to match the band’s skilful musicianship. They release their debut album Anonymity in October. Like the previous EPs it is full of bone-crushing riffs, but the strong production demonstrates a willingness to break boundaries, resulting in an epic listen.
In a progressive metal scene which relies as much on crushing chugs as impressive atmospheric vocals, You Win Again Gravity succeed in combining the two effortlessly, putting their own spin on the genre. The brutal first single ‘Grace and Focus’ contains a Northlane-esque riff, its huge, soaring chorus taking the breath away. It’s this track and ‘A Sullen Sketch’ that swim straight into the listeners’ consciousness. Both tracks feature the triple-guitar assault of Jack Jennings, Dan Dreelan, and Johnny Bastable, taking the listener on an exciting journey.
The post-hardcore influence of ‘Phonetics’ flawlessly transitions into a math-rock number, showing how far the band are pushing themselves creatively. The production is a big wall of sound, the crushing technical guitars dominating the mix. Both ‘Seamless’ and ‘I Learnt to Stop Asking’ show Jennings’ stunning clean vocals mixed with Dreelan’s barking screams, which could incite moshpits. The latter track is driven by James MacKenzie’s pummelling double kicks, maximising the impact and giving it a heavier feel.
The polyrhythmic ‘Swept to the Waves and Lost’ feature a confident vocal performance from Jennings. It’s mesmerising and near flawless, blending in superbly with the backing vocals, topped off with a riff that’ll cause faces to melt at their live shows.
Sonically, the title track is beautiful, the clean guitar blending superbly with the distorted bass. It’s a gnarly juxtaposition, the reverb on the guitar giving all the instruments space to breathe, culminating in a powerful eight-minute jam. The vocals are double-tracked to maximum effect; giving off an enormous impact. Throughout this final track, the band keeps the listener guessing, with changes so unpredictable that you don’t know what’s coming next.
On the whole, You Win Again Gravity have created an addictive album, which is a master class in songwriting. It shows their tight musicianship, and after listening to it, you feel like they’re going places and heading for bigger things. Into post-hardcore with a progressive twist? Then get into these guys, because they’re going to blow your mind.
Words by Ermis Madikopoulos