Glassjaw is back, and back with a vengeance. The band is releasing new material for the first time since 2002. "Our Color Green (The Singles)", is a powerhouse of an E.P. that will not disappoint.
This is a huge deal for the post-hardcore genre and Glassjaw fans alike because after releasing two highly-acclaimed albums in the early 2000s, the band essentially just stopped making music. The outcome was a rabid fan base left yearning for more music. After an eight-year-long hiatus, the time has finally come.
Although the album has only five tracks, they are, to put it simply, amazing. From start to finish, this E.P. will grab you by the ear drums, throw you around the room and leave you pressing the repeat button looking to go another round with "Our Color Green."
This is Glassjaw at its angriest, quieting down all those who have been impatiently waiting for new material over the past eight years. This album is the heaviest and most aggressive we've seen Glassjaw, and at times beckons the listener back to the days of their first full length release, "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Silence."
With that being said, though, the E.P. is in no way just a shorter version of EYEWTKAS. The album is fresh and raw and a variety of influences can be heard throughout, but it still manages to sound original, like the Glassjaw that fans have come to know and love.
The music itself stands out with every guitar riff, bass slap and drum beat colliding perfectly together throughout each of the five songs. Nothing seems out of place or poorly put together. Front man Daryl Palumbo is back at it again with his signature vocal style and lyrics, most apparent on the song "Stars" and the track "Jesus Glue." In the latter Palumbo breaks down into a torrent of growls and high-pitched screams over a perfectly placed breakdown halfway through the song.
His lyrics shine on the album's closing track, and my personal favorite, "You Think You're (John Lennon)," which features a chorus that has Palumbo crooning out the lines, "I've got a handle on the fiction. I'm losing my grip ‘cause I'm losing my fingers."
It is hard to choose a "best song" because all five are able to stand so well on their own. "Our Color Green" is a 14 plus minute assault on the senses that you will love more and more with each listen.
If this is a taste of things to come then fans should be rejoicing-- and foaming at the mouth-- for the full length that we are all hoping will come out sometime this year.
There is not much left to be said about Glassjaw's newest collection of songs other than that if you haven't already bought "Our Color Green," what are you waiting for?
Ronan O'Brien can be reached at ronan.obrien@student.shu.edu.
