SeeYouSpaceCowboy – The Correlation Between Entrance And Exit Wounds | Album Review

Despite forming in the tail end of 2016, many have associated California’s SeeYouSpaceCowboy with the sound of the MySpace scene of yonder. A peculiar association depending on your viewpoint, but if one was to listen to the group’s craft thus far, such connotations would be understood. As proven on the compilation of work that is Songs For The Firing Squad, the group previously resonated a sense of fervent experimental creativity and technicolour violence that classified this age in alternative music. It was indeed a curious connotation, but one that did ultimately classify the aesthetic within their previous work. However, the group have shed such curious, quirky and adolescent designations with their forthcoming full length The Correlation Between Entrance And Exit Wounds. Whilst the fervent energy and dynamic dexterity of their past has been retained, the release see’s the group mature and flex their creative muscles magnificently. Immediately, the nature of this record not only becomes crystal clear, but intimidatingly prominent. This is a record that is born from pain, struggle, fury and unceasing conflict, a violent piece of work that radiates such sentiments effortlessly. Simultaneously bludgeoning and lacerating, the opening track that is ‘Armed With Their Teeth’ wraps it’s tendrils around you and pulls you into the volatile world in which SeeYouSpaceCowboy inhabit. As the screeches and blistering tempo of ‘With High Hopes And Clipped Wings’ ravages you, it becomes clear that the journey that this release proves to be isn’t one that allows you to escape once you embark it. It’s arresting modern metalcore at it’s most dynamic and devastating. In terms of the inspiration behind this release, SeeYouSpaceCowboy wear their collective influences on their sleeve with this release. Indeed, this is a metalcore record through and through. However, what can’t be underestimated is the respective scope of this album. The Correlation Between Entrance And Exit Wounds is the authentic amalgamation of metalcore sensibilities from throughout the ages, with the record containing a sound, ideology and aesthetic that bridges the gaps between prominent eras of metalcore history. The record flawlessly combines the steadfast and volcanically intense nature of genre forerunners such as The Dillinger Escape Plan and Converge, the external cinematic emotion thats synonymous with noughties trendsetters such as Killswitch Exchange and Underoath, and the modern volatile dynamism that’s entertained by such cutting edge artists as Vein and Employed To Serve. However, whilst this may be the case, the Sacramento collective ensure their own identity is at the very forefront of this record. Whilst it may be easy to draw their respective influences, SeeYouSpaceCowboy assure that they’re a unique breed with this release. Whilst the madcap and dizzying juxtaposing time signatures and tempos that where prevalent within work within Songs For The Firing Squad have been mostly removed from the equation, the human emotion and white hot fury within the group’s sound has only been amplified through polished articulation and a greater demonstration of cinematic sonic structures. The most poignant examples of this statement stand as the short salvos of political aggression that are the condemning ‘Disdain Coupled With A Wide Smile’ and the tearfully exposed ‘Late December’, a harrowing ode to the legacy of a late loved one and a track where frontwoman Connie Sgarbossa’s pained screams clip with remorse. Regardless if the subject matter of a track is looking inwards or externally damning our current global sociocultural landscape, emotional ardor permeates this record. Whilst The Correlation Between Entrance And Exit Wounds does see SeeYouSpaceCowboy disregard their intense madcap sensibilities and wild experiments in genre dynamics, it’s in favour of a more focused sound and a leap in collective personal growth. It’s a record that truly showcases the prowess in which the group possess and one that shall bring the underground extremity of the alternative musical queer scene into the eye of the global metalcore conclave. A devastating piece of work from one of the most brightest sparks within the newly emerging scene that’s courtesy of modern extremity. Score: 8/10 The Correlation Between Entrance And Exit Wounds is released September 27th via Pure Noise Records