With a mix of impressive riff work, high energy vocals and fast paced drumming, Grenadiers’ second album, Summer, is a hotbed of cleverly structured hard rock that manages to drag influences from post-hardcore, punk, blues, heavy rock and progressive rock, creating a scorching amalgamation as fierce as the sun itself. Despite the album’s strengths, one of the most interesting parts of Summer is also the thing that is going to leave listeners most divided – the duality of its nature.
Summer takes the odd path of splitting its tracks into two subtly but still notably different song types: half of the music sets its roots in progressive rock and post-hardcore influences, while the other half goes for a classic rock’n’roll approach. What this means in terms of a listening experience is that on one hand, you’ll be sitting through howling vocals and unexpected hardcore riffs that cater nicely to fans of heavier music, but once this changes to the rock’n’roll parts with their easier to digest aesthetic and calmer singing sections, the fire and the staying power of the music takes a noticeable hit – although this may be reversed depending on where the listener’s interests lie.
With that said, there are several moments in Summer that bridge both influences, through the use of well-placed progressive guitar segments which have a tendency across the album to pop up, take an already enjoyable song and flesh it out past its own bonds – the proverbial cherry on top. Summer also manages to have the collateral to back these sections up with an unfettering, crisp production to add that extra punch to the harder sections, but ultimately due to the inconsistency between the heavier and the rock tracks, Summer seems to try and be too much at once in order to reach its full potential.
BY THOMAS BRAND
