Boston Manor's Third LP 'GLUE' Takes The Up & Comers In A Promising Direction

I’m seeing a lot of people talking about how this one just isn’t as good as their last record and that it’s a bit of a decline, but honestly I think I’m going to have to disagree. This is definitely an album with some issues don’t get me wrong, arguably even some that could make it somewhat difficult to get into as a cohesive listening experience. However, if you look past the flaws that this thing could have used an extra month in post to work through, there is some brilliant songwriting here. There is also some foreshadowing that suggests Boston Manor moving in a really promising new direction if they can follow through more on the next record, which I hope they do. As much as most people enjoyed their last couple albums, I felt like the band sounded a bit restrained when they were just putting out catchy Pop Punk tracks like usual. That’s not to say they were bad or anything as they’ve put out some bops throughout the years, but they sounded like a band that wasn’t entirely in their comfort zone. I think they’re a lot closer to finding that comfort zone here.

This record finds the band largely abandoning that Pop Punk sound in favor for a blend of Melodic Hardcore, Alternative Rock and some glitchy Art Rock ideas peppered in for good measure. Those Art Rock concepts that the band hints it are exactly what I want to hear more from them in the future. The sweeping, melancholic and grandiose On A High Ledge has such cinematically sad undertones that I absolutely adore, so much so that I think this song is the future of the band. I’m not saying I want to hear a Boston Manor album written by Thom Yorke because that would just be stupid and pointless, as an entire album sounding like this song would likely alienate their entire fanbase. However, if they were to make imposing and lavish tracks like this more of the norm and lace in those Pop Punk and Melodic Hardcore hooks they’re known for in between they could give us something special. Think Boston Manor a la Brand New. Their last albums felt really standard to me in terms of pacing and found themselves not utilizing the amount of variety they had in the right ways. This record has those same issues and it definitely hurts the album a bit in my eyes as well, but there is so much more promise in the new directions they experiment with.

It’s not just that one song that impressed me on here, but rather the numerous (and successful) attempts at new ideas that try throughout the record. Plasticine Dreams is an awesome, sweeping take on Teenage Wrist-esque Shoegaze that fits this band so unbelievably well. It’s got such a dreamy and enveloping sound to it that makes it’s catchy hooks and fantastic vocal interpolations all the more effective. This is another sound I really want to see the band experiment more with in the future, they’re great at it. That beefed up Melodic Hardcore sound they bring to the table on tracks like You, Me & the Class War and one of my personal favorites Playing God is awesome as well. They combine the atmospheric success of Plasticine Dreams over a much heavier, gloomier sound that I think makes a fine replacement for the Pop Punk they used to put out. They have so much more muscle on these tracks that make their emotional and quotable lyrics just work so much better. The band has always had dark subject matter and tackled really heavy hitting topics in their lyrics, but I just find myself caring about that aspect of their music so much more with these new sounds. That level of atmosphere, lengthier and more patient levels of pacing and pumped up Hardcore-inspired hooks just give the band that extra punch they needed. I found myself taking this album much more seriously than their last, especially in terms of lyrics (which they nail once again). I really hope to see a more focused mixture of these three sounds on the next project, complete with much more dense and structured moments like On A High Ledge.

As much as I loved all the promising parts of this album, there are definitely some smaller issues I had that make this album promising, not full out great. The first has to be with the opening track, which is a very poorly produced moment that honestly had me worried for the quality of the rest of the record right off the rip. From a songwriting standpoint it’s actually a really strong track, but the horrendous compression and painfully bad vocal mixing makes it one that’s hard to listen to sonically. It’s nothing short of a spectacular production failure that ruined an otherwise amazingly well penned opener. There are a couple of slightly underwritten moments as well, but they are mostly contained to segments of songs so thankfully it’s rare that any full track feels like fuller. I feel like the emotional potency of songs like Terrible Love and Stuck in the Mud would have been better accented by more experimental instrumentals that line up more with On A High Ledge. They are lyrically well written songs with fantastic poetry that I think feels just a tiny bit lost on the fact that they can feel boring at points. I fully understand having slow songs on a Rock album and it’s totally possible I’m just being nitpicky here, but I can’t help but feel like these songs are missing something. The Shoegaze atmosphere they perfected so much earlier on the album would have worked so well with this emotional and lyrically charged sound. Only1 is another one that I enjoyed a good bit, especially the screamed vocals, but in comparison to energetic ragers like the climactic closer Monolith and You, Me & the Class War it feels forgettable. These songs all have decent elements that save them from being actually bad, but once again they serve as the reason why this album feels like it has more potential stemming from it.

I really enjoyed what I heard on this album much more than I thought I would, which is partially due to the awesome songwriting in places and partially due to the potential I see in the band’s new direction. This shows signs of a fantastic way for them to evolve as a band and tackle something even more ambitious, as this is so much more ambitious than any of their previous albums. I totally understand asking a band like Boston Manor to push themselves even further is potentially a bit of a double edged sword if they mess it up, but I think they’re capable of making an even more cinematic album than this. If we get combinations of the three sounds we hear on Plasticine Dreams, On A High Ledge & You, Me & the Class War with the pacing of a Brand New/Radiohead album it will be a complete masterpiece. I understand I’m being a bit idealistic, and it’s totally possible I’m asking for way too much, but I can’t help but want their next album to sound like that so much. GLUE finds Pop Punk up and comers Boston Manor branching out in a much more fitting Melodic Hardcore sound and plenty of ambition that sees them in a great new light. It has its flaws and some production issues here and there, but the potential for what the band could blossom into if they continue with this level of ambition is boundless. - 7.8/10 (Best Songs - Plasticine Dreams, On A High Ledge, You, Me and the Class War)