Here at Upstate Metal, we pride ourselves in knowing that we recommend great bands with great musicians. Unfortunately, Sunken Ships is not one of those.
Sunken Ships is a four-piece grindcore band from New Hampshire. The earliest record of their creation is June of 2007, and how they haven’t given up completely is beyond me. They have 357 Facebook likes, and that is baffling.
According to their description, “The juxtaposition of the frantic decimating grindcore and the taught and emotional synth pieces fit so well together it shows more than musical talent but beautiful ART ARRANGEMENT.” That’s a pretty audacious statement that these guys simply don’t follow up on. I’ve yet to hear any significant musical talent, and calling it “art” is bold.
They claim on Reverbnation their full-length album “Sorry Is Just Five Letters Put Together” was recorded by themselves in “The Grind Factory,” also known as their home. This could not be more evident. The sound of the guitars and drums are muddy and unclear, and is poorly mixed. The vocals are one of the best parts of the music; however, some of them take me back to a time of bad ‘80s power screams, and the gang chants are distant and hard to hear over the squealing of the guitars. Most of the songs start with excessively long ambient noises or talking, and it seems as if every other song consists of 30 seconds of droning clatter.
The band states they are working on another LP, which is made up of songs that didn’t make it onto their full-length album. If this LP ends up as the same quality as their full length, I don’t look forward to reading or writing that review.
It’s difficult to pick out the positive portions of Sunken Ships. The drums, although poorly recorded, show some semblance of talent; yet the timings and beats fall off tempo almost all the time. The band does have a positive “I don’t give a fuck what you think, we’re just having fun,” attitude, which is fantastic for them. However, I can’t help but think that this attitude is a result of being told on numerous occasions that they aren’t good.
Despite whatever attitude the band may have, bands are judged more on their musical talent than how their personalities are perceived by their fans. A band like Sunken Ships is one that should stay in their garage with the door closed and soundproofed.
https://www.facebook.com/SunkenShips
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