The result is a salient summery shimmer – that feeling of hope – flowing through to even the darkest lyrics. ‘It’s going to rot and turn to dust locked up inside’ Marshall sings on sublime album highlight Yellowbelly, but as he extends that last word, despair and desolation turn to hope. It is, truly, the perfect blend of soaring ’90s power-pop and more modern emo. Almost as magnificent is Wear U Down, which sees Marshall whisper – almost seductively – ‘I can’t help but feel that we’re all fucked’ over a tune straight out of the mid-’90s U.S. alt-rock scene.
Elsewhere, Taste Of Gasoline feels like it’s trapped in a vortex of that scene and ’80s synthpop, while High Again’s wistful romanticism is set to subtle, more modern electronics that then morph into a good old-fashioned blast of incongruous arena pop. The title track sounds like Enter Shikari wrestling with old school UK political folk punks, before final track Stella builds increasingly into a swell of sound that doesn’t quite reach the grandiose heights it’s aiming for. Overall, it's an incohesive record, but one with a few wonderful moments that definitely bear repeat listens.
Verdict: 3/5
For Fans Of: Nothing, Turnstile, Smashing Pumpkins
Earth Is A Black Hole is out now via Epitaph, and is available to order/download/stream here.
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