[Click the image above to go to the full album]
The 5 AM bring a beautifully artistic array of indie to the table with this new release. The creative reach is clear from the offset, the production is flawless – so there’s nothing to worry about in terms of feeling the music – and you can, you can feel every moment, you can hear every note, and every part is played and performed with great precision and passion.
The leading vocal tops it all off with brilliant style and swagger, a fairly classic rock and roll sort of vocal, bringing the sound smoothly up and away from the lone indie label. The opening track draws you in with it’s riffs and it’s melodies, structurally leaving plenty of space around these elements within which to really catch what they’re about. Then, just when you need it to, the music gets big, and it’s everything you’d hope for in a rock record, with a whole collection of brand new songs to really make it count.
The title track switches the vibe up a little, there’s a sense of optimism right from the start, and that fits in well with the whole idea of being free. The music is atmospheric at this point, and the variation in the sound is clear yet with not too great a distance between approaches – the tracks each have their own sound and style, but you know it’s the 5AM from the very first few seconds of each, and that’s a wonderful thing.
The band have crafted their work and their performances to an immaculate level, and it pays off. There are enough riffs and melodies and lyrical moments of bliss in this record to keep you hooked for months, perhaps even years. The music sounds fantastic at full volume, at home, or driving – the perfect choice for a long journey – but it also aches for you to see it live, and that’s undoubtedly the next step listeners will take once they’ve experienced this project.
By Rebecca Cullen
