Album Review: Wayward - Without a Light EP

When you're in a band where none of the members can legally drink in America, it's a bit hard to gain any proper recognition. With rave reviews from Anthony Raneri of Bayside as well as the members from the band formerly known as A Thorn for Every Heart. Wayward have made their own way by establishing a very dedicated fan base as well as being very well connected with other bands.

The opening title track 'Without a Light' is punchy and straight to the point and doesn't waste any time with any form of a complex introduction. The soothing vocals from Chris completely contrast the previous crunchy, distorted, fast paced chords of the introduction and the song is suddenly halted. It does however feel as if the song is quite repetitive in the sense of a structure and melody.

The introduction to 'All This Time' is sparse and is just a moment between the guitarist and the vocalist. The chorus itself to 'All This Time' is catchy and straight to the point, the lyrics however aren't exactly poetry with the lead singer Chris singing "All This time, I was thinking of ways that I could carry on, and I could see that this could be forever". As you can see, the lyrics are effective in the sense of a strong, catchy melody but I don't feel as if the lyrics are anything I haven't heard before. Honestly, I don't think the guest appearance on this song did anything to make it any better. I think if there were a singer who actually contrasted the lead singer of Wayward, then it'd add so much to it.

'See It Through' echoes influences from bands such as The Dangerous Summer as well as The Audition. The lyrics in this song are slightly better than the last song "break your heart for the sake of watching it bleed a little now" outlines the themes of heartbreak and hatred and unlike the rest of the songs, it does feature a singalong bridge which contrasts the rest of the song.

The EP closes off with 'Miles' which is an extremely catchy 60s inspired pop singalong with one of the most infectious guitar sounds I have heard this year. Miles is perhaps a step in the right direction for this band.

The entire EP relies on simplicity and there is infact beauty deep within the cracks of this simplicity. With the right amount of time, I believe Wayward could write some ground breaking material that we've never heard before. They just need to experiment with variation and genre.

3/5

' Without a Light' by Wayward is available now.

Official Website

George Gadd