Box The Sky – Boxed Not In Genre – ‘The Nautilus’ In Review

Box The Sky – Edgware, England, United Kingdom.

So, we were recently  having a scroll through group posts, spreading the MF-love and we receive a message. A brief conversation later and BOOM! A great band is discovered and a review is born.

London/Edgware lot, Box The Sky, are a band. A band that really deserve more attention.

With line up changes up the yin-yang from 2011 to 2013, Box The Sky certainly had a rough start. 2014, however, saw a debut album that challenged the very fabric of modern Rock and Alternative music. Intrigued?

The band’s own descriptions of their sound, listed on their various online pages, show a solid, progressive and somewhat unexpected repertoire ranging from Math-Rock, Post-Hardcore, Metal and… Pop-Punk, all topped with soaring vocals? Now you’re definitely intrigued.

Captain Nemo’s Nautilus is about to take us on an adventure even Jules Verne would have enjoyed:

It seems fitting that track one of eleven is entitled ‘The Beast’ as it’s a riff-laden, Metal leaning track, with a welcome melodic Post-Hardcore twist to it’s structure. The latter parts of the song, in fact, almost completely drop the Metallic fury all-together.

The intro of track two almost led me to expect a Pop-Punk track in its opening moments before the sound is amped up, and a general Alternative/Punk rooted intro takes over before a soft set of vocals and sombre guitar notes lure us in. I love the guitar melodies in this one. In fact, the whole song is solid as it takes on a proggy-Alt-Rock vibe throughout the tracks progression.

Nonetheless, I do like a good genre change. And I mean a GOOD one. Track three, ‘West Side’, immediately builds on the ballad of its predecessor for a dirty Math-Metal chug. Low and heavy rhythms dominate a huge melodic chorus as the more mellow side of the band shines through again.

If I’m honest, Box the Sky really do have a slight Post-Rock appeal.

Despite the tempo changes, skilful and SEAMLESS genre crosses and general intensity, there are some softer moments. Track four, ‘Dream Being’, track eight, ‘The Nautilus’ and track ten, ‘Mia’, are still intense in their own way, but noticeably less full frontally “guitared” – Which is a word… now.

‘Mia’, in fact, leaves you with one of the most memorable lines of the album. The appeal for Post-Rock fans is also strong with this one, as are the multi-layed vocals that you’ve already encountered but haven’t tired of. You’ve just got to get through a pummelling intro beforehand.

‘We take pills, to satisfy the thrills – We don’t feel’

The band’s tag of ‘Pop-Punk’ had me intrigued from the start, especially with the genres it was thrown in with. Some of the vocal and guitar melodies could be likened to the tag, but they also fit some of the more Post-Hardcore orientated sections.

That’t said, ‘Face’ has its moments in that vein, but overall I think it’s fair to say said genre description is better understood, in the case of Box The Sky, as a general and very mild element of their sound.

‘Watch Me Burn’ is the penultimate. The band’s metallic fury resurges on a – breath in – Post-Hardcore structure, laden with said Metal influence and Math Rock technical. The chorus, however, wouldn’t be out of place in ballsy and dark Pop-Punk track.

‘Naked’, the final track, lays itself bare with a another quiet, relaxed number that ties things off nicely. What’s even nicer are the huge and soaring melodies of the closing bars. There’s a bad pun in there somewhere.

There’s been a lot of genre naming in this review, but there was no other way to describe this band. A another great, varied and an absolute pleasure to listen to, it’s a release that really adds credibility to Progressive Music.

The following direct links will help you with all your Box The Sky needs. I’ll leave you some riffs at the bottom as well, because, well why not?

• Keep track of the band via Facebook and Twitter.
• For the bands music as well as demo’s and covers check their SoundCloud.
• IMPORTANT: Until the 1st November 2015 The Nautilus is available for ‘FREE/NAME YOUR PRICE’ download from Box The Sky’s bandcamp where it can also be streamed.

#StayFresh and enjoy these riffs: