Music Review #3

No Service Project's 'Return To Paper'
Genre: Ska/Punk, with a dash of reggae
Length: 30 minutes (approximate)

If I had to describe this EP in three words, I would say "catchy", "relaxed", and "clever". I'm going to come right out and say that this is one of my favorite releases, so I'll try not to be biased.
Lets start on the good, the whole flow of this EP needs a mention.
It starts off fairly excitingly and does a great job of setting up the mood early.
'The Placebo Effect' is a five minute long intro which makes it sound repetitive, but the opening track is one of the best here. The EP starts off strong, climaxes at "Kick", then slowly mellows out, it's a perfect tone all the way through. "Ugly" is a bit weird and experimental though. Every instrument (including the singer's vocals) stands out.

The guitar is soft while staying edgy and many of the riffs are overlapped, making it sound more full and melodic. There's a lot of ska-ish upstrums too. The singer sounds...well I don't even know who to compare him to. Just listen for yourself. He's not amazing or anything, but hes not bad by any means. There is good backup vocals as well. The bassist is exactly what you'd expect from a band with some ska in them, spectacular. It's only a big focus on the later tracks though, which is a bit unfortunate.
The drums are a bit complex while still setting the beat. If I had to pick one instrument that compliments this album, I'd say guitar, but drums are a close second.

Lyrics here aren't amazing. While they're great at exploring the overall topic, the topic is what's bland. Songs about taking risks, loving life, good weather, and no regrets, while good, are nothing revolutionary. They're what keeps this album from being truly great.
The production is phenomenal, especially for a band no one's ever heard of. I implore you to take a chance, download this and listen with an open mind.

Key Tracks: "Kick", "Return To paper", "Not The Place".

4/5

'Return To Paper'
2009 EP Album

1.The Placebo Effect
2.Grind
3.Kick
4.Not the Place
5.Ugly
6.May
7.Return to Paper