We cannot get over how rad the new EP from Salem’s ONE FALL is. Actually, scratch that. We can get over it. You know why? Because ONE FALL ain’t your 2023 Rock & Roll Rumble winnahs on a lark. They earned it from releases and performances like this and if their last release didn’t convince you then Spine First! certainly will.
If you were at those Rumble shows split between Middle East Upstairs and Sonia or have seen ONE FALL live since, chances are you’ve hear a lot of what’s on Spine First! already. And this is the part where we’d normally say something like “But not like this you haven’t!” but that doesn’t really apply here because ONE FALL is one of only a small group of artists that manage to capture that fiery live performance energy in their studio recordings. Listening through the 5 tracks that make up the upcoming release and you can easily picture McWilliams at the mic crooning these anthems and giving it her all. Visions of Caleb Wheeler slamming the sticks behind the kit or Darren Lourie flanking McWilliams with a righteous bass rumble on one end of the stage (Oh the Humanity’s Kyle Paradis plays bass on these studio recordings, though, which he also recorded, mixed, and engineered over at New Alliance Audio) while on the other, Phill Hunt rips out more riffs adding to the overall ONE FALL packed punch.
It’s hard to think of any other track than “Rage/Quit” opening this new release. Not only is the incendiary just under 3 minute rager ferocious but it also exquisitely lays out what makes ONE FALL so infectious with an explosion of riffs and beats to start before dipping into the anthemic qualities that make the Salem outfit continually stand out. Also, kudos to McWilliams for constantly pulling off that biting cadence on stage. “Surrounder” is gargantuan with everyone just jumping in the ring at the same time for a Rawk Royal Rumble with Wheeler’s frenzied drumming and the flurry of riffage from Paradis, Hunt, and McWilliams leading into a an even more gargantuan chorus in the Bad Religion realm for a modern Punk classic.
Slowing ever so slightly for “Raleigh” only manages to make listeners love the ONE FALL sound more with its’ cathartic complexities woven within the sonic fabric here as Paradis’ bass stylings get a showcase along with McWilliams’ vibrant vocal palette. “Back To The Wall” is a rough and tumble romp that ponders what an Agnostic Front and Fear face off might sound like with McWilliams’ Lee Ving-like bark perfectly suited for this call-and-response banger that quite nicely segues into the finale which manifests in ONE FALL’s cover of The Boss’s classic “Born To Run” which, just as energetically as it does here, closed those Rumble-winning sets earlier in the year.
Spine First! arrives on October 20th and you can get the early word on where and when you can pre-order or pre-save your copy by heading here right now. For more from ONE FALL, including all the upcoming live appearances, follow them on the interwebs when you click here, here, or here.
One Response