As December Falls - As December Falls: album review

Nottingham, UK delivers a powerful, four-piece Punk Rock band that debuted with their self-titled album As December Falls on February 8th of this year.  As December Falls is fronted by female lead singer Bethany Curtis, who brings her own new-formed take on the genre originally led by Paramore, Tonight Alive, and other female fronted bands of the 2000s.

As December Falls is an exploration into this young band and the uprising they’ve taken.  Songs like “Ride”, “On the Edge” and “No Money” create a beautifully instrumental that coincides well with Bethany’s harmonic vocals.  Ande Hunter, Timmy Francis, and Lukas James add as much to each song as Bethany’s voice with addictive crunchy chords, popping leads, deep, funky bass lines, and rightly timed drum fills.

The dynamics in the song are fairly leveled off but it just makes each of the lower energy moments more profound than ever.  The album as a whole is loud, aggressive, and in your face, done in a fun and almost playful way. This album showcases the uniqueness this group has to offer.  The stylistic influences of Paramore, Tonight Alive, Blink-182, and other Punk Rock bands becomes hyper-focused in songs like “From the Start” which carries a Blink-182-ish riff and chord progression, but includes some of the softer edges of Paramore’s songs like “My Heart” and Tonight Alive’s “Amelia”.

My personal favorite songs would be “From the Start”, “I Don’t Mind”, and “Don’t Say a Word” which take on a higher level of dynamics, but also features a more complex instrumental and song structure. Honestly, this album was suggested to me by my good friend, Seaun Phillip Atchison, and I’m glad that I liked it because I wouldn’t know how to write an album review on an album I didn’t like. While some of the songs blur together, the album is a great demonstration of what potential As December Falls has and the band should not be taken lightly.  They use emotion and captivating instrumentals throughout every song. It’s not Kpop, but it’s music and music is what brings us all together.