Review Summary: Another Day Has Passed is an album that will give you that “better late than never” feeling.
Brooklyn’s Goes Cube take a little bit of everything and turn it into a lot of good. Elements of punk, metal, and rock are some things many bands use to develop their sound, but these guys (much like Torche before them) mold it in ways previously unknown to listeners. Another Day Has Passed is a sonic mutt – there are too many influences on this album to even comprehend.
Guitarist/vocalist David Obuchowski proficiently unleashes his ghastly screams in contrast with his emotive singing. His vocal style and arrangements perfectly match the mood set by the instrumentation and atmospheres they create (Urbana-Champaign highlights his flexibility). His guitar playing is nothing drool-worthy, but it suffices in every stretch of the imagination. Borrowing the fuzz-crunch sound similar to early Pelican material, Obuchowski is able to both pummel and move listeners, giving the band great agility. Bassist Matthew Frey aptly backs him up, often keeping things at a faster pace but also wandering here and there to keep things interesting.
Goes Cube are able to drop a Torche-like bomb of a riff on you, or unleash a High on Fire-esque firestorm upon your ears (the end of Urbana-Champaign especially). They can even develop mood and ambiance akin to Explosions in the Sky. Oftentimes these spheres of influence are set in contrast with one another in interesting and at times surprising ways. Drummer Kenny Appell is the wildcard of the group. His punkier approach puts him in the driver’s seat for the majority of the album, putting the pedal to the metal for 45 minutes. If there are up-tempo guitars, it will almost always be reinforced by his bread and butter thump-snap similar to earlier Thrice (Grinding the Knife Blade validates this). While this is effective, it's just sometimes disappointing there wasn't a little more variety here. The more metallic and crushing moments are appropriately given a sludgier punch. He’s unbelievably effective at being all-too-friendly to your headbanging tendencies, and essential in balancing the overall sound from something strictly for metal fans to something for just about anyone. Simply put, this album has just about everything you can ask for from a three piece.
Recommended tracks:
Restore
Saab Sonnet
Back to Basics
Urbana-Champaign
Another Day has Passed
