All Eyes West - Like Lightning
A bolt of feverish riffs, angular rhythms, and melodies that cut as much as they soar
Chicago alternative rock three-piece All Eyes West may not be the biggest names in guitar-heavy rock music, but three albums in and they've proven to be one of the genre's most consistent, and best kept secrets. Their latest album Like Lightning is every bit a bolt of feverish riffs, angular rhythms, and melodies that cut as much as they soar. It's true that while their self-titled 2011 debut showcased a band finding their feet, they really found this thick, guitar-heavy Jawbox sound with their 2015 album Doomer. To no surprise, Doomer was produced by J. Robbins and while he is not at the helm for this release, it's good to know they've maintained that wall of riffs that hit you hard from the opening cut "As I Bleed".
The opening cut is a strong one, but it's no downward trajectory after that. Tracks like "Simple You" and the bass-heavy "Interference" maintain the band's focus on organic instruments. Their sound cuts its way through alternative rock's more recognized structures before hitting the more angular post-hardcore/rock sounds that made headway in the 1990s because of bands like Drive Like Jehu, Husker Du, and of course, Jawbox. "Interference" in particular is a grand song- frenzied, urgent, yet melodic and calculated- the kind of songs that Dave Grohl once wrote- most evidently in the Foos best outing- their debut. Aurally it sounds raw and analog, like what records used to sound like when it was just musicians, their instruments, and a studio (whether it was actually recorded like that is beside the point because it SOUNDS like that). "Too Alive" is a blast; unrelenting and unforgiving with its choral refrain of "tell me how to feel" backed by this distorted grace.
There are elements of Superdrag through Like Lightning too- and not "Sucked Out" Superdrag, but their less radio-friendly material they showcased in In the Valley of the Dying Stars. Songs like the slower burning "Dream of a Nightmare" and the terrific, breezier "Chasing Light", show the album's depth. It's this consistency that should really appeal to those looking for an undeniably good rock record. It may not have the dizzying heights you may find in a song like (Hum's) "Stars", but there are no real low points to Like Lightning either. It's loud, it's thick, and sounds like how any good record should.
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