Founded in 2009, New York punk trio Jump For The Sails released their debut LP this past March. With previous EP's already released, the band took a while to get the perfect line up. In 2015, the band signed to Manic Kat Records after being approached by label President Peter James. But never the less, here we are today with the awesome release of Astoria!
Derivative- Automatically leaning more towards a punk sound, the song kicks off with a heavy back line and punk esqe vocals. The raw and straight forward beat makes for a catchy head banging track. This song is heavily reminiscent of any early Green Day track.
Bomb Hills, Not Countries- With guitar licks reminiscent of 80's band Rush, this track really shines in the back line. The bass and drums do a great job of directing the rest of the band, keeping a general path for the song. The only downside to the song is the production aspects, while keeping the true spirit of punk, the vocals seem to be muffled and not in sync with the rest of the band.
Clench- With strong Black Sabbath influences shown, track Clench begins with a dominant instrumental intro. With cleaner vocals and stronger guitar, the direction of the track flows once it hits the 1 minute mark . The subtle here and there of the bass adds a flare to the song and counter acts the repetitive guitar every so often, leaving this to be a memorable track.
"Stories over, now what's left to tell?"
8 Bit- Once again with dominant bass, the instrumental intro makes for a great start to the track. Twisting off the album sound this track has more of a punk ska sound. Though different, this track shows the individual talents of each musicians. The vocals for instance, are clearly shown and give you a great taste what his styling is.
X Marks The Spot-Right off the bat, the harmony between guitar and drums is present. Though one notable aspect is the presence of the bass. The bass is strong and stays heard throughout the song. The old school punk influences for the band are prominent with the quick, fast vocals and hard to understand lyrics.
Biting The Bullet- From the first second the drum rolls and bass licks lead the song into a punk vibe. Though, once again, the aspect to note is the production quality. While the instrumental aspects of the songs are okay, the quality makes the vocals hollow.
Dead Men- With another track that strays from the album sound, the song begins with a pop punk esqe intro. While the guitar and drum seems to over power the vocals, the vocalist does do a great job of keeping a strong rhythm going and leads the song. The track itself as a whole makes for a great energizer track. I mean if a track is packed full of energy you can't lose, right?
From The Ashes- Back to the ska sound, the vocals this time are clear and full. The slow beat and repetitive back line lets the vocalist redeem himself for the rest of the album. Starting from the intro the song quickly crescendos into a fast paced punk track ( like the rest of the album now). The vocals of the song are more comfortable in this track, given the vocalist himself seems to be more in his vocal range.
This Year's Redemption- Not straying too far from the rest of the album, the song doesn't change too much from previous tracks ( unless noted) to this one. Though the vocal quality seems to get better with this track, the aspect to note is the bass. The bass does a suitable job of breaking up the cacophony of guitar licks.
I-95- Letting the drums shine with a intro full of slowly crescendoing roll, the final song on this LP is a personal favorite. Full of clear vocals and subtle yet strong guitar, the band found a perfect harmony making a well oiled song. Keeping the punk roots alive, Jump For The Sails found a great way to finish the album.