Written by Brandon George
A solitary, spinning guitar and a grit-soaked voice call out, imploring, “Would you listen / if we looked any different / ’Cause these are all the things that we can’t change.” The band charges in, surrounded in untamed production and holding each other up through the momentous opener that is “Barricades.”
The beginning moments of Chicago Pop-Punk Quartet Action/Aventure’s latest EP, “Pulling Focus,” make it entirely clear that the group has no need for subtlety and no time to waste. They spend the next six tracks delivering the same level of high-octane anthems with a rousing style.
Songs like “Club 27” and “Semi-Prologue” show off just how much of a powerhouse drummer Adrian Brown is, playing with polyrhythms in the former and providing some exquisite tom and floor work in the latter. Bassist Manny Avila shines through bass breaks in “Club 27” and hard-hitting lines on “Nothing Left.”
Each member showcases virtuosic mastery of their given role, but it’s not the individual aspects that make Action/Adventure so compelling, it’s their unparalleled ability to craft a living, breathing whole out of a mix. Nothing feels as though it’s more important than anything else, and the meticulousness of the album’s craft gives its emotional drive an aura of composure behind its voracity.
Similarly to the production, the lyricism is a brilliant blend of raw emotionality and intelligent crafting. Vocalist Blake Evaristo, and guitarist Brompton Jackson weave effortlessly between metaphorical setups like “Do you still believe in faith and curses / Cause I’m haunting you through words and verses,” and harrowing gut-punches like “What made you think that I ever needed anybody anyway? / I only have myself to blame.”
This concoction of empathetic and pontificating adds layers of depth to each listen through the release. Hand-in-hand with the record’s lyricism is the complete weight to each and every riff and breakdown.
It’s the kind of music that summons in the listener that drive to be in the middle of a massive crowd, swinging bodies around in synchronized celebration. It is completely without a doubt that Action/Adventure will be one of the best live bands to look out for once shows become safe again.
From my first listen to my tenth, every time the drop came in on “Nothing Left,” I was pin-balling around my car, my desk, my bed, wherever I was, completely captured by the movement of the song, screaming “I guess I never learned my lesson / To separate the past and present / To my future self I hope you're doing fine.”
At seven tracks, “Pulling Focus” is short, effective, and utterly stirring. It’s simultaneously a culmination of what the band has done so far and a promising look into what they’re going to do next.
You can find “Pulling Focus” as well as the rest of the Action/Adventure discography on your preferred streaming service. To further support the band you can follow them on Twitter @ActAdvBand, and pick up some merch on their Bandcamp! Let us know what you think of “Pulling Focus” by tweeting us @lgndsoftmrw!
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