A New Day – Forever Tonight

By RingMaster Review on August 4, 2014 • ( 0 )

A New Day Online Promo Picture

Though a bit of a mixed bag, Forever Tonight the second EP from UK melodic rock band A New Day, offers more than enough to ensure the quartet is well worth keeping a close eye on. Consisting of three tracks which vary in success but all showing a potent promise to healthily flirt with the imagination, the release is a solid and intriguing encounter. It is not going to set the melodic rock/pop punk world alight but does give it something new to contemplate and take a determined interest in.

Hailing from Basildon, A New Day formed in 2013 taking inspirations from the likes of Blink 182, All Time Low, Simple Plan, and Jimmy Eat World into their own evolving sound. Honing their sound, the band took its time before hitting stages and subsequently lighting up a torrent of venues across the South East of the UK. Debut EP Now It’s Our Turn made a swift impression with fans and the underground scene which Forever Tonight can only reinforce. Made up of Chris Tunnicliffe (vocals/rhythm guitar), Glen Hearn (lead guitar), and brothers Scott (backing vocals/bass) and Sam Johnson (drums), A New Day is at that point where they are ready to catch the ears of the country, though whether the new EP is the key is arguable but you sense it is on the cards at some point.

Forever Tonight opens with its lead track, which is accompanied by a video, but also its weakest proposition. Boyfriend opens with a coaxing melodic guitar expression which instantly engage ears but in many ways that is as good as it A New Day Cover Artwork gets, its reoccurring lure the potent call within an otherwise limping song. From a dull production to unsure vocals, muted rhythms to a relatively lifeless breath, the song fails to find its ignition in presence and colour. It is surprising in many ways as the guitar weaves of Hearn are inventive and the craft of the band open but there is little which sparks and up against the stronger more vibrant songs which follow, the track is underwhelming.

That disappointment is soon forgotten as Faith In Me swiftly romps in ears. From a vocal draw, the song is soon a punchy stride of pop punk energy and melodic enterprise with eager rhythms and engagingly spiky hooks. The song is like night and day to its predecessor, though again the production is a dulled touch to the life and potency of the song. Harmonies add promising hues to the track as it strolls engagingly whilst rhythms and a deliciously shadowed bassline flirt with the imagination. It is a strong and rampant slice of pop rock which pushes the potential of the band to the fore as it excites ears, though it too is left in the shadow of final track Call You Mine (I Don’t Want To).

Starting with a blaze of guitar and a potent rhythmic lure as the strong tones of Tunnicliffe croon out the narrative, the track makes an impressive entrance elevated by another rich and throaty bass roaming. The song does not have the fevered urgency of the previous song but feels livelier and melodically hungry at its core. The guitar weaves of Hearn again impress with their enterprise whilst vocally Tunnicliffe and the band find their strongest blend and suasion yet. The best track on the release, it is a highly satisfying end to an encounter which at its start left more doubts than answers about its promise.

Whether A New Day is able to grab the UK in its melodic hands with Forever Tonight is debatable but taking the last pair of songs and especially Call You Mine (I Don’t Want To) as suggestive evidence, it is hard not to expect the four-piece to set tongues wagging far and wide some when ahead. They certainly know how to keep ears happy with a resourceful blend of pop punk/rock and that is always a good base to grow from.

The Forever Tonight EP is available now

http://www.anewdayofficial.com/

7/10

RingMaster 04/08/2014